Everyone who wants to comment on today has to watch this entire tape and hopefully realize that at approximately the 38 minute mark President Zelensky asks a question of Vice President Vance which isn’t really a question. (My guess is that someone gave President Zelensky really terrible advice to not fight with President Trump in public but that he could score on the VP because the VP couldn’t respond. Wrong.)
President Trump had been almost indulgent of President Zelensky for 38 minutes, trying to get to the post-presser meeting with a path forward to a ceasefire intact, aware that he has to deal with Putin afterwards as well. A couple of times President Zelensky dances on the cliff (especially with the pictures which someone who doesn’t know this business told him would be an excellent stunt and wasn’t) and President Trump steers it back to a path to the post-presser meeting.
But then President Zelensky puts the VP on the spot and it escalated. Then President Zelensky tells President Trump how the United States would feel, and you can see our president give into a (justified) rising anger at President Zelensky’s approach and rhetoric, as did the VP.
I have long supported Ukraine and still do. President Zelensky’s conduct has been heroic. But he is used to President Biden, Secretary Blinken and NSA Sullivan who did not have a plan or a purpose other than “de-escalation” which they assumed would stop escalation from Russia —which did not happen— and for whom every decision was agony. President Zelensky also did not remember that Ukraine didn’t lose the war (that President Biden told Putin would be fine if it was a “minor incursion”) because of weapons President Trump had sent in his first term.
I don’t know how this gets back on track. I don’t know if the warrior Zelensky can actually make a deal. Putin has kidnapped tens of thousands of children, murdered thousands of his people and tens of thousands of his soldiers. Putin has committed war crimes. All of that is true. It is also true that Putin has thousands of nukes and NORKs.
President Trump has a plan. He wasn’t in charge when Putin invaded Ukraine the first time or the second time. All President Trump can do is try and bring about a stable and enduring peace and get Ukraine enmeshed with Europe and the U.S. while also dealing with Putin. Nixon dealt with the worst murderer of the 20th century when he sat down with Mao. Reality is what it is. Presidents of the United States have to deal with whatever mess their predecessor leaves them. I’ll repeat what I said on the program today: President Zelensky should call all of his strongest supporters w/i the @SenateGOP and genuinely seek advice. And dismiss those who have been “advising” him for the past six weeks. Very publicly.
This is moralistic garbage, which is unfortunately the rhetorical currency of the globalists because they have nothing else to say.
For three years, President Trump and I have made two simple arguments: first, the war wouldn't have started if President Trump was in office; second, that neither Europe, nor the Biden administration, nor the Ukrainians had any pathway to victory. This was true three years ago, it was true two years ago, it was true last year, and it is true today.
And for three years, the concerns of people who were obviously right were ignored. What is Niall's actual plan for Ukraine? Another aid package? Is he aware of the reality on the ground, of the numerical advantage of the Russians, of the depleted stock of the Europeans or their even more depleted industrial base?
Instead, he quotes from a book about George HW Bush from a different historical period and a different conflict. That's another currency of these people: reliance on irrelevant history.
President Trump is dealing with reality, which means dealing with facts. And here are some facts:
Number one, while our Western European allies' security has benefitted greatly from the generosity of the United States, they pursue domestic policies (on migration and censorship) that offend the sensibilities of most Americans and defense policies that assume continued over-reliance.
Number two, Russians have a massive numerical advantage in manpower and weapons in Ukraine, and that advantage will persist regardless of further Western aid packages. Again, the aid is *currently* flowing.
Number three, the United States retains substantial leverage over both parties to the conflict.
Number four, ending the conflict requires talking to the people involved in starting it and maintaining it.
Number five, the conflict has placed--and continues to place--stress on tools of American statecraft, from military stockpiles to sanctions (and so much else). We believe the continued conflict is bad for Russia, bad for Ukraine, and bad for Europe. But most importantly, it is bad for the United States.
Given the above facts, we must pursue peace, and we must pursue it now. President Trump ran on this, he won on this, and he is right about this. It is lazy, ahistorical nonsense to attack as "appeasement" every acknowledgment that America's interest must account for the realities of the conflict.
That interest--not moralisms or historical illiteracy--will guide President Trump's policy in the weeks to come.
And thank God for that.
@kyledcheney Appears to be a question of constitutionality - the line between executive and legislative needs to be fixed. Enough of Congress delegating rule making and enough of the executive branch not owning their destiny.
I am giddy every day, to a degree unheard of for middle-aged men. It's the feeling of being a little kid the night before Christmas. Every night I go to bed, knowing great surprises await in the morning. My blood is renewing, as if via spiritual transfusion. It feels fantastic.
@RepJasonCrow “intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both”
HOLY MOLY!!! Magatte Wade dropped a nuke on Jamie Raskin at the House Judiciary hearing when he went off-topic to attack Elon Musk.
"As an entrepreneur, my time is valuable. I came here because I thought we were going to talk about the regulatory state and why it matters. So you need to make up your mind on that."
"My continent, Africa, is the poorest region in the world today because it happens to be the most over-regulated region in the world. So, if you don't see the value of over-regulated... wait until this country becomes like most African countries." - @magattew
Magatte NAILED IT.
Dear leeches who have siphoned off our hard-earned tax dollars,
You've taken what was given in good faith, what was earned through sweat, sacrifice, and the relentless grind of daily life. These dollars, extracted from our paychecks, were not yours to claim. They were meant for schools, roads, health, and the common good - not for your lavish lifestyles, hidden accounts, or to feather your nests.
Each penny you've pilfered was a vote of confidence, a piece of our collective hope for a better future, squandered for your personal gain. You've turned the noble act of paying taxes into a bitter transaction, where we, the people, are the unwitting fools, and you, the cunning profiteers.
Your actions have not just robbed us financially but have eroded the very foundation of trust upon which our society stands. You've made a mockery of public service, transforming it into a personal enrichment scheme.
But here's the truth, the public's ledger never forgets. Your theft of our hard-earned tax dollars is a debt you owe, not just to the treasury, but to every citizen whose dreams you've deferred, whose opportunities you've diminished.
Let this be known - we will not forget, we will not forgive, and we will not rest until accountability is restored. Our hard-earned tax dollars demand respect, demand to be used as intended, for the collective good, not for the greed of the few.
You've declared war on the trust of the people, and in this battle, we will fight back. We'll rebuild, we'll reform, and we'll ensure that our hard-earned tax dollars never again line the pockets of those who see public office as their personal piggy bank.
Signed, 100+ million MAGA's!