48 thoughts on “News/Politics 3-1-25”

  1. “Ten bad takeaways from the Zelenskyy blow-up

    1. Zelenskyy does not grasp—or deliberately ignores—the bitter truth: those with whom he feels most affinity (Western globalists, the American Left, the Europeans) have little power in 2025 to help him. And those with whom he obviously does not like or seeks to embarrass (cf. his Scranton, Penn. campaign-like visit in September 2024) alone have the power to save him. For his own sake, I hope he is not being “briefed” by the Obama-Clinton-Biden gang to confront Trump, given their interests are not really Ukraine’s as they feign.

    2. Zelenskyy acts as if his agendas and ours are identical. So, he keeps insisting that he is fighting for us despite our two-ocean-distance that he mocks. We do have many shared interests with Ukraine, but not all by any means: Trump wants to “reset” with Russia and triangulate it against China. He seeks to avoid a 1962 DEFCON 2-like crisis over a proxy showdown in proximity to a nuclear rival. And he sincerely wants to end the deadlocked Stalingrad slaughterhouse for everyone’s sake.

    3. The Europeans (and Canada) are now talking loudly of a new muscular antithesis, independent of the U.S. Promises, promises—given that would require Europeans to prune back their social welfare state, frack, use nuclear, stop the green obsessions, and spend 3-5 percent of their GDP on defense. The U.S. does not just pay 16 percent of NATO’s budget but also puts up with asymmetrical tariffs that result in a European Union trade surplus of $160 billion, plays the world cop patrolling sea-lanes and deterring terrorists and rogues states that otherwise might interrupt Europe’s commercial networks abroad, as well as de facto including Europe under a nuclear umbrella of 6,500 nukes.

    4. Zelenskyy must know that all of the once deal-stopping issues to peace have been de facto settled: Ukraine is now better armed than most NATO nations, but will not be in NATO; and no president has or will ever supply Ukraine with the armed wherewithal to take back the Donbass and Crimea. So, the only two issues are a) how far will Putin be willing to withdraw to his 2022 borders and b) how will he be deterred? The first is answered by a commercial sector/tripwire, joint Ukrainian-US-Europe resource development corridor in Eastern Ukraine, coupled with a Korea-like DMZ; the second by the fact that Putin unlike his 2008 and 2014 invasions has now lost a million dead and wounded to a Ukraine that will remain thusly armed.

    5. What are Zelenskyy’s alternatives without much U.S. help—wait for a return of the Democrats to the White House in four years? Hope for a rearmed Europe? Pray for a Democratic House and a 3rd Vindman-like engineered Trump impeachment? Or swallow his pride, return to the White House, sign the rare-earth minerals deal, invite in the Euros (are they seriously willing to patrol a DMZ?), and hope Trump can warn Putin, as he did successfully between 2017-21, not to dare try it again?”

    https://x.com/VDHanson/status/1895892571664343159?t=6r2iU4w9TbdIkS4md4diEg&s=19

    VDH gets it. Click and read on..

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  2. “5. What are Zelenskyy’s alternatives without much U.S. help—wait for a return of the Democrats to the White House in four years? Hope for a rearmed Europe? Pray for a Democratic House and a 3rd Vindman-like engineered Trump impeachment? Or swallow his pride, return to the White House, sign the rare-earth minerals deal, invite in the Euros (are they seriously willing to patrol a DMZ?), and hope Trump can warn Putin, as he did successfully between 2017-21, not to dare try it again?

    6. If there is a cease fire, a commercial deal, a Euro ground presence, and influx of Western companies into Ukraine, would there be elections? And if so, would Zelenskyy and his party win? And if not, would there be a successor transparent government that would reveal exactly where all the Western financial aid money went?

    7. Zelenskyy might see a model in Netanyahu. The Biden Administration was far harder on him than Trump is on Ukraine: suspending arms shipments, demanding cease-fires, prodding for a wartime, bipartisan cabinet, hammering Israel on collateral damage—none of which Westerners have demanded of Zelenskyy. Yet Netanyahu managed a hostile Biden, kept Israel close to its patron, and when visiting was gracious to his host. Netanyahu certainly would never before the global media have interrupted, and berated a host and patron president in the White House.

    8. If Ukraine has alienated the U.S. what then is its strategic victory plan? Wait around for more Euros? Hold off an increasingly invigorated Russian military? Cede more territory? What, then, exactly are Zelenskyy’s cards he seems to think are a winning hand?

    9. If one views carefully all the 50-minute tape, most of it was going quite well—until Zelenskyy started correcting Vance firstly, and Trump secondly. By Ukraine-splaining to his hosts, and by his gestures, tone, and interruptions, he made it clear that he assumed that Trump was just more of the same compliant, clueless moneybags Biden waxen effigy. And that was naïve for such a supposedly worldly leader.

    10. March 2025 is not March 2022, after the heroic saving of Kyiv—but three years and 1.5 million dead and wounded later. Zelenskyy is no longer the international heartthrob with the glamorous entourage. He has postponed elections, outlawed opposition media and parties, suspended habeas corpus and walked out of negotiations when he had an even hand in Spring 2022 and apparently even now when he does not in Spring 2025.

    Quo vadis, Volodymyr?”

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  3. For a different perspective, here is a post I read earlier today shared by a friend, but written by a man named Michael Jaehnig.

    ~ “I recommend watching the full Trump Zelensky exchange if you haven’t. It began to go off the rails towards the end when Vance interjected himself.

    A Polish reporter had asked Trump about concerns in Poland that he was aligning with Putin and talked about how during the Cold War, America was a source of freedom for him.

    After Trump responded, Vance interjected to say that we had tried standing up to Putin under Biden and Putin invaded and that Trump was trying diplomacy.

    Zelensky gently then responded saying that Putin invaded in 2014 and was killing Ukrainians throughout Trump’s first term. Zelensky then mentioned that he himself tried diplomacy with Putin after he was elected in 2019.

    In 2019, in furtherance of Minsk 2, Merkel, Macron, Zelensky, and Putin met for a Normandy format summit in Paris. Zelensky and Putin signed a ceasefire and a Russian gas transit deal with a prisoner exchange. Zelensky mentioned how Putin subsequently violated the deal in 2020.

    Zelensky then asked Vance what diplomacy he was talking about.

    This is when Vance blew up on Zelensky and the fight began.

    Towards the end of the fight, a Ukrainian reporter asked what would happen if Putin violated the peace agreement. Trump and Vance sidestepped the question and Zelensky mentioned how important security guarantees are to Ukrainians for this reason.

    And it is true. Ukrainians more than anyone want peace in this war. But they aren’t idiots. They aren’t naive. They know Putin has signed peace deals in the past. There have been many over the years of Putin’s long reign. There were even some signed by Putin prior to 2014 affirming Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty. He broke them all.

    So Ukrainians simply want more than words. They want something concrete to keep Putin’s word.” ~

    Elsewhere, it was pointed out that Zelensky has thanked the U.S. several times for our help.

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  4. A cautionary note from Kim Strassel (“Why Democrats Are in the WildernessRepublicans shouldn’t get smug. They’re repeating the other party’s mistakes.”)

    ~ … If Democrats didn’t already know the progressive agenda was a political loser (and Kamala Harris’s campaign subterfuge proves they did), they do now. What to do with an ash heap of a political platform, one nonetheless rigidly enforced by liberal shock troops, and no charismatic figure with the spine or know-how to lead a change of direction? Engage muscle memory and do the easy: fight, fight, fight. Thus the bizarre sight of Democrats rallying fervently in favor of government waste, fraud and inefficiency. Expect this to continue. 

    This could be the MAGA future. The GOP is a party of many factions, and their policy disagreements frequently produce stalemates and governing heartache. Influential Trump supporters are honing their own methods for stamping out even mild disagreement with the president’s approach: rally online supporters to pile on, label the target a member of the “uniparty” or the “establishment,” threaten a primary. This exact playbook was exercised numerous times over the past few weeks of nomination votes. “Rules for Radicals.”

    It’s a recipe for intellectual stagnation. It’s a departure from the modern conservative movement, which has been defined by its innovative ideas, from school choice to civil-service reform. It sits unnaturally in a movement that has long prized individualism and entrepreneurship and condemned the left’s collectivism. It mistakes the goal of party unity (the act of members compromising on strongly held positions for a legislative victory) with the tyranny of party conformity (think like we do, or get the boot).

    And look how it worked out for Democrats. ~

    https://www.wsj.com/opinion/why-dems-are-in-the-wilderness-politics-policy-parties-704f792b?st=ecpL6A&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

    • dj

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  5. A few days ago, I said the interim mineral deal as published appeared to be a win-win. The US gained rare earth minerals and Ukraine received funding to continue the war. Everybody wins — except for Putin.

    So what happened? From what I understand, clauses concerning ceasefire and guarantees were added or at least discussed. It no longer became a win-win. Ukraine started to lose under those implications.

    Merkel said in her autobiography that Trump could not grasp that in international relations a win-win was possible. In Trump’s world, you were either the winner or the loser. Hence, if Zelensky was seen as winning then he thought he was the loser. However, I don’t think that was the issue here.

    Other commentators have wondered if Putin inserted himself into the conversation, after all the mineral deal was a loss for Russia. I never bought into the “Trump is a Russian asset” but the purposeful sabotage of perfectly good win-win is weird.

    Then there’s Vance….. He’s obviously an intelligent person yet he seems to be spoiling for a fight. He strikes me as one of those intelligent people who will read up on a different field, proclaim themselves an expert and then speak with total confidence. He seemed poised for a fight — the question is why?

    Kizzie’s comment align with my perception. However, this article also gave me pause for thought.

    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/28/jd-vance-volodymyr-zelenskyy

    hrw

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  6. As for Hanson

    1. Zelensky doesn’t have much affinity for any particular American group. This is placing the Ukrainian issue as a partisan or domestic political issue. Z has one purpose — aid to help fight Russia; he like most Ukrainians view the war as one they are fighting on behalf of the West. And most Europeans (and Canadians) agree with this assessment. This has nothing to do with Biden vs Trump. I think he is starting to grasp that some Americans don’t view the war the same way — ie a fight between the west and authoritarians.
    2. See above — Z does see the agendas to be aligned. I think the visit alerted him that its not the same in the Trump admin but it is elsewhere in the west. The Trump admin is out of step with the rest of the west.
    3. This point mixes things up — military spending, tariffs, trade surplus, etc. Not sure what Hanson is trying to say here. Military spending and a welfare state is not an either/or. For decades, Sweden and Finland took care of their own defence and build a welfare state that is the envy of the world. Trade deficits don’t have to be a problem — all it means is the US acquired more goods than its partner. in some cases that could be a positive. Also trade deficits don’t include services — which the US usually comes ahead.
    4. Again not sure what Hanson is saying here. However, he appears to be saying that the solution is commercial interests coupled with a DMZ will be needed. That was Z’s point — mineral rights with security guarantees.
    5. Again not sure what Hanson is saying here. But this reminds me — what’s Trump next move?? He still doesn’t have the rare earth elements (that the tech bros want/need). Does he invite Z back? Can Z sell them to Geramny? Remember NATO was created to keep the US in, Germany down, and Russia out. If the Trump admin insists on damaging NATO and pivoting to the Far East, Germany may fill the vacuum. If Europe comes through, will Z come back to Trump….. (Not saying Europe provide enough support, but if it does, the US loses influence)

    hrw

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  7. (Strassel ps, I forgot to include her lede):

    ~ Donald Trump’s shock troops are bro fist-bumping, having used their online influence to browbeat GOP senators into confirming most of the president’s nominees. They might be careful of the political conformity they wish for. ~

    • dj

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  8. 6. Elections? that’s actually an interesting question. When the UK finally had elections in 1945, ten years after the last election, the voters rejected Churchill and the Conservatives. Z’s chances rest on what type of peace he achieves. Same for his party. Party politics in eastern Europe are very loose and depend far more on personalities than actually organisation which is the case in the US, Canada, etc. Polling in Ukraine has problems but right now Z is polling around 55-60%, depending on the poll and question, that is he is more popular than Trump is in the US. However, an actual election is a different dynamic especially in eastern Europe

    7. Bibi is a war criminal who enjoyed support from Biden so I’m not sure how Hanson draws an analogy. This is just weird.

    8. Good question. It ultimately comes down to Europe’s ability to support. I’ve heard arguments both ways and I’m interested to see how it goes. I lean to Europe providing enough support for Ukraine to maintain a defensive posture. In another words the war will drag on — and Trump will not have fulfiled his promise of ending the war quickly.

    9. Kizzie’s comment answers this point. Vance seemed to be spoiling for a fight. Z did “correct” or “Ukraine explain”; however, given he’s been at war for three years I can understand that he views the need to give the Ukrainian side. And remember he does view the war as Ukraine defending the West and he will advocate this position.

    10. If anything, this press conference has made Z a hero again. Canada has always been pro-Ukraine (we have the largest Ukraine diaspora) and we’ve always been anti- Trump. The man is national hero here.

    Side note — the comment on playing cards and a weak hand was weird. English is the third or fourth language for Z. Over the years, I’ve learned metaphors are probably the hardest to translate — hence Z’s response – I’m not playing cards.

    Side note#2 — the comment on Z’s lack of a suit was also weird. It seemed like a deliberate attempt to start a problem where there was none. Elon Musk doesn’t wear a suit and that’s obviously not a problem. For Z, his clothes are a statement in the same way as the keffiyeh for Arafat, or the traditional dress for the Saudis. Both of whom appeared in the White House.

    hrw

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  9. The endless grift, a Ukrainian house of cards, meticulously built on manufactured narratives, elite lobbying, and bottomless Western funding, collapsed in real time under the weight of now-apparent contradictions. Zelensky’s public tantrum didn’t just blow up bridges—it vaporized them. For nearly four years, if not longer, the Proxy War project has survived on a carefully cultivated illusion of Ukraine as a noble underdog bravely resisting an unprovoked invasion, an indispensable ally to democracy itself.

    But yesterday, before the world’s gimlet eye, Zelensky shattered that illusion for all time with his own words. His breathtaking sense of entitlement, his arrogant demands for American guarantees, and his utter lack of gratitude all reinforced what so many of us have known for years: Ukraine isn’t an ally. It’s a bottomless money pit of ever-more-reckless demands, managed by a cartoonish madman who thinks he can order the United States around.

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  10. If Zelensky wasn’t prepared to sign the deal as is, he shouldn’t have come to the White House to ‘sign the deal’. His behavior and demeanor was disrespectful even before Vance said a word. And Zelensky was the one who first confronted Vance, not the other way around. Vance spoke up to add to Trump’s answer to a reporter’s question, not to Zelensky. Zelensky confronted and interrupted the President numerous times, rolling his eyes and shrugging at the President in front of the press, in the Oval Office.

    The President’s statement after the exchange was very perceptive I think:
    “We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today. Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure. It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

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  11. I had to chuckle at the Zelenskyy then gently responded and This is when Vance blew up on Zelensky and the fight began.

    I watched the entire clip just like Jaehnig and did not see the same. I saw a petulant demanding entitled brut attempting to manipulate the situation. It didn’t work. And JD did not blow up. I’m guessing Jaehnig didn’t vote for Trump😊

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  12. WSJ Editorial Board: (Putin Wins the Trump-Zelensky Oval Office Spectacle – Vice President Vance starts a public fight that only helps Russia’s dictator)

    … But then the meeting, in front of the world, descended into recriminations. The nose dive began with an odd interjection from Vice President JD Vance, who appeared to be defending Mr. Trump’s diplomacy, which Mr. Zelensky hadn’t challenged. Mr. Zelensky rehearsed the many peace agreements Mr. Putin has shredded and essentially asked Mr. Vance what would be different this time. 

    Mr. Vance unloaded on Mr. Zelensky—that he was “disrespectful,” low on manpower, and gives visitors to Ukraine a “propaganda” tour. President Trump appeared piqued by Mr. Zelensky’s suggestion that the outcome in Ukraine would matter to the U.S. “Your country is in big trouble. You’re not winning,” Mr. Trump said at one point. 

    Why did the Vice President try to provoke a public fight? Mr. Vance has been taking to his X.com account in what appears to be an effort to soften up the political ground for a Ukraine surrender, most recently writing off Mr. Putin’s brutal invasion as a mere ethnic rivalry. Mr. Vance dressed down Mr. Zelensky as if he were a child late for dinner. He claimed the Ukrainian hadn’t been grateful enough for U.S. aid, though he has thanked America countless times for its support. This was not the behavior of a wannabe statesman. …

    … Turning Ukraine over to Mr. Putin would be catastrophic for that country and Europe, but it would be a political calamity for Mr. Trump too. The U.S. President can’t simply walk away from that conflict, much as he would like to. Ukraine has enough weapons support to last until sometime this summer. But as the war stands, Mr. Putin sees little reason to make any concessions as his forces gain ground inch by bloody inch in Ukraine’s east. 

    Friday’s spectacle won’t make him any more willing to stop his onslaught as he sees the U.S. President and his eager deputy unload on Ukraine’s leader. Some Trumpologists have been suggesting Mr. Trump will put pressure on Mr. Putin in due time. But so far Mr. Putin hasn’t made a single concession on territory, or on Ukraine’s ability to defend itself in the future after a peace deal is signed. 

    President Trump no doubt resents having to deal with a war he thinks he might have prevented had he won in 2020. But Presidents have to deal with the world they inherit. Peace in Ukraine is salvageable, but he and Mr. Zelensky will have to work together on an agreement that Ukrainians can live with. 

    Mr. Trump does not want to be the President who abandoned Ukraine to Vladimir Putin with all the bloodshed and damage to U.S. interests that would result. Mr. Vance won’t like to run for President in such a world either. ~

    • dj

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  13. Vance did not start that fight. He didn’t even address Zelensky until he was confronted. Having said that, I do agree with the WSJ that Russia now has a stronger position, but that was Zelensky’s doing; it’s certainly not the fault of Trump or Vance. Secretary of Treasury, Scott Bessent has indicated that during his negotiations in Kiev, Zelensky was temperamental and discussions were ‘heated’. Bessent said he tried to explain to Zelensky that we are trying to present a unified front to the world with ‘no daylight’ between our countries by publicly going into business with Ukraine. I suspect Zelensky was accustomed to doing whatever he wanted with the mentally compromised head of state in the last administration. There’s a new sheriff in town and he’s not on Zelensky’s side or Putin’s side. He’s on our side, and the side of peace. God bless the President and keep him safe.

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  14. Ouch.

    ~ Vance, the champion of diplomacy, shouldn’t have baited a war-weary man fighting for the survival of his country in the first place. If he wanted a deal, his job should have been to prevent Trump from being goaded, not to goad Trump. He should have been the one to nudge Trump to call an end to the presser. That’s what Mike Pence would have done. But Vance has his own agenda, and he poorly served his president in service to it. What is his agenda? To be America’s foremost troll. ~

    • dj

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  15. Back in September… before our citizens voted for a strong President and Vice President…

    From NBC:

    Without strong U.S. support, it might be difficult for Ukraine to keep up the fight against Russia. 

    The partisan divide appeared to grow this week after Zelenskyy visited a munitions factory in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Biden’s hometown, which Trump and other Republicans viewed as a signal of which way he wants the November election to go. 

    Republicans also took issue with recent comments Zelenskyy made to The New Yorker in which he called Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, “too radical” and said he needed to “read up on the history of the Second World War” to understand why Russian President Vladimir Putin shouldn’t be appeased.

    “My feeling is that Trump doesn’t really know how to stop the war even if he might think he knows how,” Zelenskyy added. 

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  17. The Never Trump folks who run the WSJ are clueless, as djs quotes of them show. They have an anti-trump agenda, and it shows. Vance stood up for his president, and his country. Only those pushing an agenda say otherwise.

    They might as well get used to Vance, as he will be the next R candidate for president, whether they like it or not.

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  18. I think Zelensky well may be ‘war weary’ and in over his head. He’s consistently undermined attempts to end the war. Trump did his best to align our interests with that of Ukraine, but Zelensky blew that up too. His aims seem to be directly at odds with American interests. Like it or not, his country is not going to be a member of NATO, and he’s not going to get back the predominately Russian speaking portion of Ukraine. It’s unfortunate that many more people will have to die before Ukraine is ready to come to the table.

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  20. “This tweet risks being reported and restricted, but I see a necessity to say it out loud:

    Our real enemy isn’t Russia or Ukraine. It’s not even China.

    It’s the ones who induced and tried to perpetuate wars – so they can launder billions of our money into their own pockets.

    It’s the ones who funded revolts and instability all over the world via USAID

    It’s the ones who have committed unspeakable crimes on children on an island and held themselves above the law.

    It’s the ones who manipulate people with endless propaganda – using our tax dollars.

    It’s the ones who have sown so much division among our own people.It’s the ones who shot my dad, my uncle, and @realDonaldTrump in the head.

    It’s the ones who have poisoned our own people for years just so they can profit more.

    They’re the same group of people.

    And we will not stop until we splinter them, the deep state, into a thousand pieces and reclaim our country.”

    https://x.com/RFKJr_Official/status/1895872553543254438?t=4lhMPjAQR2JRQWz626B4dw&s=19

    Truth.

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  22. “Here are facts about Ukraine that would be common knowledge if the media was honest & did its job:

    – Putin invaded largely because the U.S. broke its word/agreements on eastern expansion of NATO.

    – The US & Europe rebuffed Russia’s efforts to join NATO so he was never let into the club while

    – The US moved missile defence systems to the door of Russia, rubbing his face in it.

    – Then don’t forget the U.S. & Ukraine dismissed the will of the Russian-speaking people of Crimea to be part of Russia & covered up the mass murder of thousands across eastern Ukraine, to include Lugansk, Odessa & so on.

    – The CIA carried out a color revolution in 2014 to overthrow the Ukrainian govt & installed the leader THEY wanted – not the Ukrainian people.

    – Western Ukraine was the headquarters of the Nazi SS during WWII and those same Nazis are still active in the country today, as evidenced by the division of Nazis in the Ukrainian military known as the Azov Battalion.

    – The US & Europe have been arming, funding, training & equipping actual Nazis in Ukraine for years while screaming about Trump supporters being Nazis.

    – There is a long history behind this & one critical point concerns Alan Dulles, former head of the CIA who protected Ukraine’s Nazis from facing justice at the Nuremberg Trials – why?

    And why does no one ever ask that, to include all the Jewish organisations out there? No one is curious about the US protecting the Ukrainians in the Nazi SS?”

    https://x.com/laralogan/status/1895956282739179784?t=rGVggPs24PD5r1RI12_UZg&s=19

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  23. This was well known beforehand, and it’s what the majority of voters wanted.

    Also, none of these people just happened to have Ukraine flags at home. This is paid for astroturf, with props. It’s theater, not grassroots.

    https://x.com/ggreenwald/status/1896213357264564310?t=iNfpVU_-WK1oqFAk11X-NQ&s=19

    “The 2024 election:

    One candidate vowed to indefinitely fund war in Ukraine. Her name was Kamala. She lost.

    The other – Trump – vowed to stop US funding and end the war. He won.

    A few Manhattan liberals idiotically wrapping themselves in a foreign flag doesn’t change that.”

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  25. “One of the most striking things about yesterday’s Zelensky press conference was Lindsey Graham’s reaction to it. The two are old friends, but Graham disavowed him within the hour. This was more than just transactional disloyalty. It was scapegoating. Lindsey Graham knows what’s coming. Over the past three years, with the tacit support of its western patrons, the Ukrainian government has committed a remarkable number of serious crimes. The Ukrainians sold huge quantities of American weapons on the international black market at twenty cents on the dollar. These weapons are now in the hands of armed groups around the world, including Hamas, the Mexican drug cartels and the forces now controlling Syria. God knows what the Ukrainians have done with the pathogens in American biolabs in their country. Even US intel agencies aren’t sure. The Ukrainians have also murdered a number of people in various countries in political assassinations, and tried to murder others, including American journalists and a European head of state. This is all true, and it’s all going to come out at some point. Better to start blaming it on Zelensky now.”

    https://x.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1895883813223354871?t=S_LMbWnm0eildEkIOuQZMg&s=19

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  32. Not everyone in Ukraine has lost their marbles. Perhaps it is indeed time for elections. Zelensky is tired and ineffective, and his presence may be counterproductive for the Ukrainian people.

    “A prominent Ukrainian lawmaker declared it was “absolute idiocy” for President Volodymyr Zelensky to openly argue with U.S. President Donald Trump in front of the world during their Oval Office meeting on Friday.

    Oleksiy Goncharenko, a member of the Verkhovna Rada parliament in Kyiv, lamented that Ukraine’s relationship with President Trump came to an “end” on Friday after a heated White House meeting in which President Zelensky was accused of being “disrespectful” to the U.S. leader and the American people.

    Goncharenko wrote on Facebook that it was “absolute idiocy to start ARGUING with the President of the United States in front of the cameras,” adding that “it can be done and probably should be done, but not in front of cameras.”

    The Ukrainian MP, who sits with the European Solidarity bloc of former Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko in the parliament, went on to warn that Zelensky’s behaviour on Friday could have “very bad consequences” for Ukraine….”

    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2025/03/01/absolute-idiocy-zelensky-blasted-by-ukrainian-lawmaker-for-arguing-with-president-trump-in-front-of-the-world/

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  33. @11:01 That’s horrifying. That young man is obviously terrified. And this is the forced conscription Vance was referring to. It must be what the WSJ thinks of as ‘trolling’. How far they have fallen.

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  34. Deranged leftists ….

    Vice President JD Vance and his family set out for a quiet ski trip in Vermont. But in today’s America, where the radical left gets triggered by the mere existence of conservatives, a peaceful vacation was apparently too much to ask for. Instead, a mob of pro-Ukraine protesters, foaming at the mouth, decided to make his family the latest target of their deranged hysteria.

    So what happened? The Vance family was met at Sugarbush Ski Resort by a crowd of screeching activists wielding signs that read “Vance is a traitor,” “Go ski in Russia,” and “JD Vance is Nazi scum.” Charming, right? Nothing says “defending democracy” like an unhinged public tantrum aimed at harassing a family on vacation.

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  36. I have not read all that is in this post, but since there are so many opinions about Zelensky, I thought I would add to the pile of considerations and possible truths and half truths.

    God knows the total truth.

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  38. The question is why? and now what?

    It seems Trump and Vance are intent on upsetting the post WW2 order. However what is the plan moving forward?

    The rules based international order that emerged after WW2 including the UN, NATO, IMF, World Bank, etc provided benefits to the entire western world but provided the foundation for American power. Now that these institutions and the idea of rules seem to be falling, will the US emerge stronger or weaker? Instability never favours the established power and thus the Trump admin creating instability is liking shooting themselves in the foot.

    A pro Trump or more accurately an anti Z/Ukraine friend suggests this is part of Trump’s plan to pivot to East Asia and contain but I don’t see it. China already sees the break down of rules as an opportunity to push the Taiwan issue as a former Chinese colonel and academic claims;

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/02/america-is-going-down-china-can-capitalise-on-damage-caused-by-trump-former-pla-colonel-says

    Trump claims Z doesn’t have the cards. But how well is Trump playing his cards. He lost the minerals deal. He has emerged as a pro Putin even in the minds of European conservatives. The Europeans are gathering to readjust and go their own way. As the world continues to divided between liberal democracies and authoritarians the US is seeing itself in the latter camp. For the elite, this will secure their wealth but for the average American will probably suffer political and economic problems.

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/02/donald-trump-volodymyr-zelenskyy-us-ukraine-america

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  39. It’s a weird world where the WSJ and the Guardian editorial both agree and this should give people pause for thought. Personally, I never thought I’d see the day that I would read a WSJ opinion piece with approval.

    The near identical tweets posted by Republican leaders have given rise to ideas that the insults at the White House were planned. Rubio and Graham’s tweets are near identical which is bizarre given Rubio’s body language at the press conference.

    There’s a lot of commentary that suggests Trump is acting personally (which is not unusual) and is still upset with Z for not cooperating in getting dirt on Biden way back in 2019, and instead causing him to be impeached.

    Some conservative European commentators are wondering when Vance will thank the Europeans for invoking Article 5 of NATO in order to invade Afghanistan — body bags went home to many Europeans countries because of this.

    The fact that there are alternative voices and criticism in Ukraine suggests free speech and liberal democracy is still alive in Ukraine. Nobody quotes dissent Russian Duma members, because they aren’t allowed to exist.

    And yes liberal democracy is still alive — you can protest your vice-president. And more of this will come as many people see the press conference as symbolic of the Trump admin’s move from friend of democracies to friend of the authoritarians.

    hrw

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  40. There’s nothing odd about the WSJ and the Guardian being together here.

    Both are biased for the establishment and known Never Trumpers. It’s all so predictable, really. But it’s not surprising in the least.

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  41. And anyone who watches the conscription videos above, yet still think Zelensky is the good guy here, needs to rethink their world view. He’s not, at all.

    Putin isn’t either, let’s be clear about that. This is a case of no good guts, and no winners.

    Back when Kennedy was president we had the Cuban missile crisis. No US president was going to allow that. Well same goes for Putin. He was never gonna let the US and NATO put US weaponry, and that’s what NATO equipment is, on his borders. Like it or not, he has the same right as Kennedy to do all possible le to stop it. He has done so.

    It didn’t have to be this way, yet thanks to Zelensky, the EU, and Biden, here we are.

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  42. Honest question for those supporting Zelensky.

    Are you willing to send your sons, realatives, friends, or neighbors to die for Zelensky and Ukraine?

    I’m not, under any circumstances.

    https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1896274722914214044?t=NpHZXx7HXbP5LpYT0mVPBg&s=19

    “We have a huge problem on our hands.

    NATO countries are now saying they’ll bypass the U.S. and send their troops into Ukraine.

    And then, if Russia attacks, they might invoke Article 5, which would basically start World War 3 by dragging in all of NATO and the U.S.

    Bad things ahead if this keeps up. Bad things.”

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  44. Trump has a mandate from the electorate to end the Ukrainian war—or at least our part in it, but I really think Americans want it to come to a sustainable end for Ukraine’s sake too. The forced conscription is heartbreaking. I can’t see how Zelenskyy is the person to lead Ukraine in the direction of peace because he doesn’t think he’s losing the war. You could see it on his face when Trump told him he was losing the war. Unfortunately, it seems many more lives will have to be lost or upended before someone in Ukraine says ‘Enough’. Then peace can be negotiated.

    I do think Trump will continue to open dialogues and repair the US relationship with Russia regardless of Ukraine, and I’m glad to see it. Even though we have different forms of government we should be able to collaborate on mutually beneficial projects. Ending this war could be one of those.

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  46. “For the liberals “standing with Ukraine”, do you have any idea what you’re actually standing for?

    Let General Flynn explain it for you:

    “It’s a hub for human trafficking.

    It’s a hub specifically for child trafficking.

    It’s a hub for narcotics trafficking.

    It’s a hub for weapons trafficking.

    We know about our bio labs…

    And there’s a lot of money just flowing in….It’s money laundering, you name it.””

    https://x.com/Patri0tContr0l/status/1895881449137480047?t=QoR3pMEFy6gg_zSEZXfT4w&s=19

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  47. “The “Emergency Summit” – where 13 PMs and 2 Presidents heroically gather to draft a strongly-worded tweet, sip overpriced espresso, and pretend Europe isn’t entirely dependent on U.S. defense spending.

    Europe loves U.S. money & protection but complains nonstop—like a freeloading roommate who demands gourmet meals but won’t even do the dishes.

    Meanwhile, if the U.S. left NATO, these endless wars would magically stop—because Europe can’t fund both its socialist utopia and its open-border experiment while also paying for its own protection. Reality check pending.”

    https://x.com/WorldHallOfFun/status/1896253010076184627?t=akAFRlxxcj5RfnIn_S86Ig&s=19

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  48. Ukraine has/had a problem with many of the items listed but so does Russia, North Korean, Iran, etc — countries that the Trump admin is now voting with in the UN. In fact, the corruption index lists those three countries as being in worse shape than Ukraine.

    I’ve asked my anti-Z friend several times — if Z was so corrupt why didn’t he leave in 2022 when Biden offered him a free trip out. Instead he stayed and continued the fight. I don’t think Z is blemish free but he’s not the corrupt leader portrayed by Russian propaganda. Definitely better than previous Ukrainian leaders. And the US admin can’t say much about sex trafficking after lobbying the Romanian gov’t to release the Tate brothers and let them back into the US.

    The European summit is interesting — definitely responding to Trump and from the pro Trump responses, there seems to be some panic from the MAGA world. Europe might actually get things done

    One can have a “socialists utopia” and a solid military — Finland and Sweden have done both for decades before joining NATO.

    hrw

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