Giving Trump a chance to reply “yes” when asked if he wanted to see Ukraine victorious was the presidential debate equivalent of a layup, if Trump wanted it.
After all, even most Republican critics of the Biden administration’s policy in Ukraine would offer boilerplate support for the country’s sovereignty.
And in declining to directly answer the question, Trump actually gave a strikingly direct picture of how he’d approach the war in Ukraine.
That could mean a Trump administration far less willing to challenge an expansionist Russia and more inclined to cut deals.
“If Donald Trump were president, Putin would be sitting in Kyiv right now,” she said.
“Donald Trump won’t say he wants Ukraine to win the war?
The moment underscored, again, how Trump in a second term might take the Republican approach to foreign policy even further from its Reaganite roots.
They don’t respect Biden.
He hasn’t even made a phone call in two years to Putin,” Trump said.
Muir asked again: “Just to clarify the question, do you believe it’s in the U.S. best interests for Ukraine to win this war?
He declared, “That is a war that has to end.”.
Giving Trump the option to say “yes” when asked if he would like to see Ukraine win was like giving him a layup if he so desired. Even the majority of Republicans who have expressed disapproval towards the Biden administration’s approach in Ukraine would essentially endorse the nation’s sovereignty.
In fact, Trump provided a startlingly clear picture of his strategy for handling the conflict in Ukraine by refusing to respond to the question directly. In addition to offering a possible glimpse into a Trumpian realpolitik that might be implemented during a second term of government, his remarks suggested that he had a somewhat coherent worldview regarding the situation in Ukraine. This might indicate that the Trump administration is more likely to make deals and is far less inclined to oppose an expanding Russia.
Using the response, Vice President Kamala Harris painted Trump as an autocrat’s friend and a stooge of Vladimir Putin, calling him “a dictator who would eat you for lunch.”. She declared, “Putin would be sitting in Kiev right now if Donald Trump were president.”.
“I thought that Donald Trump would at least pretend that he wants Ukraine to win the war, but he won’t say that. Pete Buttigieg, the secretary of transportation, posted something on X.
Despite his insistence that a settlement is the best means of putting an end to the conflict, Trump remained steadfast in his refusal to publicly applaud Ukraine’s victory.
This instance further highlighted how Trump, in a second term, might move the Republican foreign policy philosophy away from its Reaganite foundations. And it was even more remarkable considering how Trump’s tenure in the White House was marred by allegations of collusion with Russia.
His remarks regarding Ukraine were somewhat dissimilar from his hazy, dishonest, or rambling responses on other subjects. Regarding his argument regarding Ukraine, Trump appeared to follow through on a pledge he made at the beginning of the debate on Tuesday: “Everyone knows I’m an open book.”. “.
Muir stated clearly what he was asking: “You said you would end this war in a day. Just before tonight’s break, you stated as much. And tonight I would like to ask you a very basic question: Do you want Ukraine to win this war? How exactly would you go about doing that?
Trump’s response, “I want the war to stop,” as usual, focused on how he saw his own ability to negotiate and how he claimed he could have stopped the war from starting in the first place. “I am very familiar with both Putin and [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy. My relationship is going well. They also honor your president. They honor me, so that’s good. Biden is not respected by them. Given that he hasn’t spoken to Putin by phone in the past two years, how would you respect him and why?
“Even before I become president, I will resolve this.”. After winning and becoming president-elect, Trump said, “I’ll talk to both of them and bring them together.”.
“Just to be clear, do you think it’s in the U.S.?” inquired Muir once more. S. is it in Ukraine’s best interests to win this conflict?
Trump then reiterated, saying, “I believe it’s in the U.S. s. it is in everyone’s best interest to simply end this conflict. Okay. Strike a deal. Because we need to put an end to the destruction of all these human lives. “.
Additionally, regarding something that Biden and the majority of U.S. s. Russia’s nuclear deterrence is a dance that leaders perform, and he indicated that it is not worth cornering Putin.
He possesses something that others do not. He possesses nuclear weapons. It is never a topic of discussion. He possesses nuclear weapons, Trump declared. “Nobody ever gives that much thought. And maybe, in due course, he will make use of them. He might not have posed a serious threat. He does have that, though. a topic we even find unpleasant to discuss. It’s not something that people want to discuss. “.
