“ “Tell me with whom you associate, and I will tell you who you are.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Goethe’s statement is closely related to
Proverbs 13:20.
Many people associate indirectly with people they do not know much or anything about. All it takes anymore is to be standing at an event next to a stranger and someone snaps a photo. That alone can be used to try and smear a person who has no idea who is standing next to them.
Your quote is okay and true if you have an ongoing association with bad people knowing they are bad.
I believe Trump when he says he did not know who Fuentes is. I really had only heard the name but never cared who he was and still do not.