Trump's Susan Rice allegation 'beneath dignity of that office': Former Obama advisor

David Axelrod, senior advisor to former president Barack Obama, strongly criticised President Donald Trump for suggesting without evidence that former national security advisor Susan Rice may have committed a crime by trying to unmask the names of Trump's associates who were mentioned in intercepted communications during the Obama administration.

During an interview, Axelrod said the comments were "appalling, but at this point, probably not surprising."

"To slime someone that way, to accuse someone of a crime without any evidence is beneath the dignity of that office, the office in which he was sitting," he said, as reported by The Guardian.

"Even if it's not beneath the dignity of the man who currently holds it."

"If the President has something to say or evidence to present, present it to the American people, but don't throw out charges like this and slime people as you sit in the Oval Office and then not back it up," he added.

Axelrod said he believes Trump's meeting on Thursday with China's President could also be the reason that chief strategist Steve Bannon was removed from the National Security Council. He called Bannon "the leading anti-China voice in the White House" and said he believed that made the Chinese "uneasy."

Axelrod also said that Trump should have prepped up for the very important meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, rather than "calling reporters in to level gratuitous, outrageous charges.