Trump refuses to say if he wants Ukraine to win the war

jeffw@lemmy.world to World News@lemmy.world – 1274 points –
Trump refuses to say if he wants Ukraine to win the war  | Semafor
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He'd give up on Ukraine. And call it a win.

"Winning the battle is worth losing the war"

(Trump, The Art of the Deal, pp. 179-181)

Yeah pretty much.

Aka appeasement. We tried it Donny. Though this time it's Trump who wants to be dictator.

Trump doesn’t care so long as Russia keeps paying him.

The Jews would have had peace if they'd just let themselves be taken to camps peacefully.

This is less funny because Russia literally did commit a holocaust in Ukraine.

He didn’t answer a single fucking question about anything, just ranted about illegals eating pets the whole time.

He is outing gop for eating pets. He just needs to do it under the radar.

Remember every blame the throw around is admission on their part.

Suddenly ol’ brainworrm endorsing Trump makes sense!

This is why I don't watch the debate. I know it'll just piss me off because he won't say anything but crazy shit.

It was great seeing Kamala get under his skin. The reaction cams were really fun seeing Kamala react like a normal human to his insane rantings and him just smoldering and getting angrier and angrier when she hit back

My favorite was when she clearly (very clearly IMO) seemed about to say "...but this motherfucker..." and restrained herself.

But it was so crazy that it was incredibly funny. I was doing paraphrases of a lot of his responses in the pinned debate thread in c/news if you're curious.

The thing is, it isn’t actually funny. we can laugh at the old racist piece of shit criminal but it is actually quite sad and makes me angry that this is where we are.

I'll have to check it out! I do enjoy seeing the highlights and memes afterwards lol.

I was looking forward to what he was going to say about why he blocked the border bill. As expected, he chose to immediately talk about something else.

Let's not forget: it appears that JD Vance may be the originator of that whole farce.

In which case, Trump touted it because either a) they honestly think it is good propaganda which will sway the campaign, or b) Trump is quite literally eating his own dog food, because there are too many lies to keep track of.

Don't worry, when Kamala catches and imprisons those illegals she will do transgender surgeries on them

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It was obvious as hell that he wants Russia to win.

All we have to do is make him president elect! We don’t even have to inaugurate him!

You'll get all the Logan act violations you seek if you act now!

This gets me - if he's that fucking clever then he should have ended it by now. And he says he's good friends with Zelensky, how? Do they go out drinking together? They've probably spoken twice. America should be ashamed of Trump the Liar.

America should be ashamed of Trump the Liar.

Americans capable of feeling shame are. Unfortunately, his base is incapable of feeling shame, so there's no effect there.

They're capable of feeling shame, just not for good reasons. Like, they can feel ashamed of thinking a trans person is hot.

he will allow Russia to win yes, in exchange for favours probably

Has he not done enough already for that wretched, glorified petrol station they call a country.

He is in a LOT of debt, financially and politically, to Russia. And he also is desperate to win, because if he loses he's going to jail. He'll do anything Putin wants him to

What makes you think he hasn't already been given the favor years or decades ago and how he's the one repaying it and he'll get nothing in return?

Mostly the fact that Trump never pays his debts.

I have to wonder if the potential for accidentally falling out of a window goes any way into affecting the way he approaches certain debts.

No. If Trump were capable of conceptualizing losing and suffering consequences he wouldn't do half the shit he does.

Yea, what a POS he is for pretty much admitting this. Not that we didn’t know this already.

This stood out to me. Do we know of anyone who Trump might be worried about upsetting if he said he wanted Ukraine to win? Anyone at all?

Do we know of anyone who Trump might be worried about upsetting if he said he wanted Ukraine to win? Anyone at all?

That question is awkwardly worded, why are you putin it that way?

Just not russian to any conclusions

Tsar right to know if he’s compromised.

Fun fact: at his mother's deathbed, Stalin reportedly told her that he had "become something like the Tsar". Perfectly accurate FWIW.

What is confusing to me is why would it matter to Putin if Trump lied here? The Russian mode of government is lying and deception after all.

Does he actually think that his voters want Ukraine to lose? Oh fuck, do his voters actually want Ukraine to lose?

Their line isn't that Ukraine should lose, it's that America shouldn't give them money while homeless vets, Ukraine is corrupt, biden crime family, nato expansion, etc. Which coincidentally are all Russian talking points.

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Half the big right wing youtubers are getting paid by Russia.

Yes. They want Ukraine to lose.

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I remember when Russia did go in, briefly Fox News was full of editorializing that Russia should get to have Ukraine. They at least tried to got full on pro-Russia when they thought the narrative might fly and Ukraine was going to just get conquered in a week or so. Clearly they were trying to set things up for blithe acceptance for what Russia had done and for the world to move on (until next time).

I think that between the prolonged conflict and the fact that their boomer audience actually may still be inclined to remember their cold war feelings that this won't fly, that they backed off to less aggressively calling for complete Russian victory. But as seen here, there's still a theme of making it clear that you're ok with whatever outcome, leaning toward "but should we spend our money?" to undermine things rather than calling for a pro-russia outcome outright.

I wonder if a big part of the reason is just the whole phone call about Biden and subsequent impeachment, and how Zelenskyy wouldn’t play ball and the whole thing damaged Trump’s ego in a big way. So even if it’s politically advantageous in every way to say you want Ukraine to win, Trump is incapable of doing so.

The whole reason he tried to keep weapons from Ukraine was because he was given instructions by Putin to make Russia's planned invasion easier.

Trump being Trump, he tried to extort some political favors or of Zelenskyy first, but clearing a path for Putin was always the goal.

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This needs to be very widely publicized.

It was a presidential debate. It was fairly publicized.

I think maybe they mean... Like, not washed out by the other 90 minutes of crazy shit he was saying.

Oh no doubt. I only wish she hadn't spent so much time explaining what a fucking idiot he was instead of taking about herself or her plans. He made all those talking points for her by, well, talking... It was a great beat down nonetheless, and I get it was her one time to really make a fool out of him in person, but again, he did that better than anyone ever could.

Great show overall, would watch season 2.

She walked him like a dog. Flatly stated he could be easily manipulated, and proceeded to do just that. He could not even muster the courage to make meaningful eye contact with her the entire debate. She just stared him down and dominated him. How brutally emasculating for him.

Watching it made me so hungry, going to doordash some fried kitten.

I dunno, I just read an article about that country's political debate from last night and it didn't mention this point, it was mostly discussing how angry that bloke got at the other politician and how overall it seems like it was a bad night for him and a good night for her.

The specifics were a bit overshadowed by the perceived importance of the event and it's outcome itself, I think.

I'm sure in the coming days some more details will flow out of the USA and we'll hear some discussion of specifics where they concern us, like their politician's stances on the war in Europe, I agree. I've just not seen it mentioned just yet is all.

But it's only 7am and I think the debate was in the middle of the night, so I shouldn't expect much yet haha :-D

But Kamala Harris should have poited that out and reminded everyone that Trump wouldn't answer. Then it would be her jabbing him instead of some talking head no one knows letting it pass. Missed opportunity.

It will not put off his voters. Some of them just don't care about anything international. Others admire Putin as a strongman who isn't afraid to kill his enemies and persecute minorities, a moral conservative, a self-professed Christian, an ally against democracy and a defender of the same bigotries they share.

He doesn't just need the MAGA faithful to win. I can't believe I have to keep saying this.

You're right. The hope is that they're not enough and he fails to attract anyone else.

I don't think he's gaining voters and I do think he's losing them.

It won't. Because people are hung up about the eating pets thing. Which, insane as it is might have happened.

Idk why the actual issues are swept under the rug, and the controversial takes are the focus.

I feel like when Harris said that Putin would be sitting in Kyiv, Trump didn't understand. "Why would he be in Kyiv, Putin would be at home, happier of course" because he's taking it literally like a fucking idiot.

And yes, Trump, of course Putin would be happier with you in charge when he invaded. The Biden administration gave crucial Intel in the months leading up to the invasion and military support. Harris 100% deserves props for being involved in that.

He also still refused to admit he lost four years ago, and admit any fault or regret for Jan 6th. And he showed zero remorse or awareness about the Central Park Five. Pure deflection for every single question.

His boss sure as shit doesn’t want Ukraine to win.

His boss wants to stay in power, Ukraine is just convenient way of doing it.

Ukraine was a massive fuck up for Putin. He believes in the bullshit known as color revolution.

So he thought he'd pull one in Ukraine. A few years of some soldiers fucking around in the East, then he'd walk in and be welcomed.

Which is fucking stupid.

But Putin has long since killed anyone who would tell him that an idea is stupid, or that people don't work the way a paranoid, backstabbing KGB trained psychopath thinks they do.

No, Putin fucked up hard due to the dictator trap.

Now he's scrambling. He's been killing off rivals and opponents at a breakneck pace the last few years, all because his position has never been weaker.

And he barely managed to diffuse a coup attempt.

He had to use treachery to do it, so the next time, the coup leader will not back down.

No, Putin is desperate to pull out some sort of win in Ukraine, because anything else is the end of his rule, and likely his life.

And he barely managed to diffuse a coup attempt.

Context?

Ohh, I forgot about that. Not sure if that coup would have made things better, but it was an interesting time.

It would have made shit so much worse, but is a sign of weakness in Putin's rule.

That's why Putin is so murder happy right now. He's having to reconsolidate his rule.

He knows he can't say Russia but he doesn't want Ukraine to win so he does this.

I don't know why he can't say Russia. It's the obvious truth, his swallowers - sorry, his followers - would lap it up no matter what, and it's no more or less insane than anything else he says.

They are more apt to believe obvious lies than obvious truths.

...how many years ago was it when "facts don't care about your feelings" was their thing?

Their facts were nonsense, of course, but they at least tried. The lazy, obvious bullshit that 1/3 of the population immediately adopt as their whole identity now is genuinely depressing.

Russian Asset. Better dead than Red.

Americans being so politically illiterate they think that the government they practically installed is somehow communist.

lol remember to vote I guess

Nothing stupider than an American. Well, an American with a political agenda maybe.

russia isn't "red" and never really was to begin with

That's what annoys me the most. Tankies will go defend Russia like it's the promised land of communism, when the only remnant of communism it has is rigged elections and propaganda.

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Someone offended your favorite colonizer!

Quick, to the semantic-debate mobile, we must split the hairs!!

Nah dude, someone took the opportunity to use a slogan originating in witch hunts of people threatening the ruling class in their bleeding of post-war prosperity in America.

This is about some despot using their resources to interfere with what modest self-governance we have in America

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Not only this, but they rephrased the question asking if he thought it would be in America's best interest to win the war and he declined to answer again...

I found it interesting that Trump claims if he wins the election, he'll have the Russia / Ukraine conflict resolved BEFORE he even takes office. I'm paraphrasing there, but that's how I interpreted what he stated.

If that's the case, then it seems like he could choose to end the conflict at any time. Why doesn't he just end it now? Save countless lives. Minimize injuries. Prevent suffering. Save money. I'm sure that'd change some voters' minds if he did it. Might even win him the election.

Yes, this is a rhetorical question. I have no doubt that he can't actually end it without basically giving in entirely to Russia.

It is a confusing statement. I understood it to be basically that once he is guaranteed to be president, Putin will know his man on the inside will be in charge, and Putin can end the war/negotiate for favorable terms with the US as enforcer.

Trump can't end it before the election, because there's no guarantee he'll win.

Trump thinks that makes him a brilliant negotiator, instead of what he really is which is a stooge that can be played like a fiddle.

I found it interesting that Trump claims if he wins the election, he’ll have the Russia / Ukraine conflict resolved BEFORE he even takes office.

He's invoking the Iran Hostage Crisis, I think. Reagan famously cut a deal with the Ayatollah to release the American hostages on the day of his inauguration, despite Carter having nailed down a prisoner exchange months earlier.

If that’s the case, then it seems like he could choose to end the conflict at any time.

He's full of shit. This isn't a hostage negotiation where Biden did 95% of the work for him already. This is an intractable siege spanning a third of the country's land area which has been spiraling into long range bombings of the respective civilian capitals. Trump isn't going to be able to leverage a ceasefire that's already on the table, because Zelensky isn't asking for a ceasefire, he's asking for permission to use higher capacity long range missiles to force Russian troops off the southern front.

I have no doubt that he can’t actually end it without basically giving in entirely to Russia.

The siren song Trump sings is that he could have prevented the '22 invasion by playing nice with Putin before tanks crossed the border. And 100%, if there had been a detente prior to the outbreak of open conflict, hundreds of thousands of lives would have been saved. Even at a concession of territory, this arguably would have been preferable to the holocaust committed across the territory to date.

But the reality is that he was just as happy to sell advanced weapons systems to Ukraine in 2018 as Biden has been in extending military aid today. If anything, Trump was more responsible for the Ukraine/Russia war going hot than Biden. And not even for particularly noble reasons (MIC $$$!!!)

Trump falsely promised Ukrainian leadership his full support in the event of a Russian retaliation, sold them a bunch of tacti-cool military surplus, and then turned around and tried to cut the same fucking deal with the Russians.

In this sense, it also invokes Reagan who was famous for sending Rumsfeld to cut arms deals with both Iran and Iraq shortly before the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War.

Promising both countries your support, goading them into conflict, and then pulling back to let them duke it out is textbook John Bolton foreign policy. And guess who was whispering in Trump's ear all through that first term in office?

You should have learned by now that everything that comes out of Trump's mouth is pure bullshit.

It’s not a mystery how he plans to do it. He’ll demand Zelenskyy cede taken territory to Russia. If Zelenskyy doesn’t accept those terms, then the funding to Ukraine will stop.

He doesn't mean he could end it at any time. He says "if I'm elected" cause he's talking about the time period after he won the election but before he actually took office.

The moment you win the election and become the person who will DEFINITELY be the president in a couple of months, your bargaining power with other nations (and anyone really) goes through the roof compared to what you had as a mere candidate.

I've stated that last as a fact though it's just what seems self-evidently true to me.

He refused to answer any question

That's not true, he very clearly answered that he's stronger than Superman and smarter than Batman.

He could beat Batman for sure, especially with prep time to make a concept of a plan.

So much conservative talking points about Kamala is pro-genocide with no evidence.

Like motherfucker, your main boy has zero plans and has a history of flying by the seat of his pants and having Americans killed.

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That's why he's nothing more than vatnik kompromat.

Reminder that Zelenskyy basically called Trump's bluff on his plan, encouraging him to share it now.

It's hardly worthy of being called a bluff.

Everyone knows Trump would just force a Russian victory. He could do that just by refusing further support for Ukraine.

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You know, there's good people on both sides. People with a lot of value and good ideas. It reminds me of my businesses, so many good people. There's a lot of good people in this world. You know what else is good? Watermelon. It's a melon.... Made... From water. How incredible. It's delicious. How do they do that?

  • Trump, probably.

Translation: He wants Russia to win the War and for America to be signed over to the Kremlin, but he knows he can't say that aloud

...i don't think he wants anything other than to keep uncle vlad at bay...

Forgot the context of what you were responding to when I saw it in my list of replies I've recieved, so I thought for a second that someone was trying to fight Dracula.. and I'm like "Them Belmonts are at it again aren't they? Didn't think Drac was gonna be back for another 11 years"

I want to save lives that are being uselessly

Yeah that sounds about right

The one thing he can't obvious lie about directly.