Did Trump Just Betray Ukraine? - Paul Warburg

[TexasTowelie]

Donald Trump's negotiations to end the war in Ukraine are unfolding in dramatic fashion - and not in the way many people had hoped. Trump has called president Zelenskyy of Ukraine a dictator, and told him to make a deal or to witness the destruction of his country. But does the United States actually have that much negotiating power?

From the United States offering a deal to Ukraine in exchange for rare earth metals, to Donald Trump talking to Vladimir Putin and Russia without Ukraine in the room, to Trump then turning back and trying to appear to be on Ukraine's side, to Trump now turning AGAIN to adopt Russian propaganda talking points, it's really a mess to look at. So what on earth is going on?

In this video, I look at all of the pieces carefully, including the individual psychology of players like Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, to draw a logical conclusion about the current state of Ukraine negotiations, and where things will likely go from here.

[Mister Ed]

1. Yes. n/t

[tanyev]

2. The question implies that there was a time when Trump supported Ukraine.

Which I don’t think was ever true.

[Scrivener7]

3. Is that a rhetorical question?

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. MaddowBlog-Ignoring backlash, Trump leans into false claim about Zelenskyy being a 'dictator'

Presidents only get so much political capital, and Trump has decided to invest his finite capital into supporting Putin's authoritarian regime in Moscow.
https://bsky.app/profile/stevebenen.com/post/3limgqblntc2i

Presidents only get so much political capital, and Trump has decided to invest his finite capital into supporting Putin's authoritarian regime in Russia.

Maybe the White House could try explaining why.

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/ignoring-backlash-trump-leans-false-claim-zelenskyy-dictator-rcna192955

As Wednesday came to an end, and much of the world tried to come to terms with the fact that the White House had effectively switched sides, aligning the United States with our adversary and against our ally, Trump leaned into his offensive again. NBC News reported on comments the Republican made at the Future Investment Initiative Institute’s PRIORITY Summit in Miami Beach, Florida.

“President Zelenskyy talked the United States of America into spending $350 billion to go into a war that basically couldn’t be won,” Trump said. “The only thing he was really good at was playing Joe Biden like a fiddle. He played him like a fiddle.” Trump repeated his characterization of Zelenskyy as a “dictator” and asserted without clear evidence that Zelenskyy is refusing to hold an election because he is losing the support of his citizens.

The American president delivered the unscripted remarks with the confidence of a man who didn’t appear to care at all about the geopolitical or electoral consequences.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4llrhdclvdlmmynkwsmg5tdc/post/3likwvp5ywd2p

Link to tweet

It’s worth emphasizing, of course, that Trump’s rhetoric isn’t just dangerously bizarre, it’s also wildly at odds with reality. The American president’s anti-Ukraine lies have also drawn international rebukes from traditional U.S. allies, and even some congressional Republicans have carefully expressed disagreement with Trump’s radical nonsense.

There’s even reason to believe the White House is not on board with the broad American mainstream. The latest national poll from Quinnipiac University asked respondents, “Do you think the United States should trust Russian President Vladimir Putin, or not?” At a point in our history in which the public is deeply divided on many issues, 81% of Americans don’t agree on much, but in this survey, 81% of people said the United States should not trust Russia’s authoritarian leader. (Click the link for more information on the poll’s methodology and margin of error.)

And yet, there was Trump in the Oval Office last week, telling reporters on camera that he trusts Putin.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:iu4j537hox5huj4bwnwgub4z/post/3li3jupn5i52d

Link to tweet

.....But he’s doing it anyway. Presidents only get so much political capital, and for reasons Trump has never made any meaningful effort to explain, he’s decided to invest his finite political capital into supporting the authoritarian regime in Moscow.

Maybe someday, the White House can explain why.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

5. More Americans say Trump is a dictator than say Zelenskyy is

https://bsky.app/profile/rpsagainsttrump.bsky.social/post/3lip462qovs2i

Link to tweet