It’s easy to see through Trump’s Ukraine ploy | Kenneth Roth
As US midterms approach, Donald Trump is abandoning Ukraine's democracy in a desperate effort to deny responsibility for worsening inflation, following elections in Brazil and Serbia that showed voters can see through such subterfuge.
As US midterms approach, Donald Trump is abandoning Ukraine's democracy in a desperate effort to deny responsibility for worsening inflation. This past weekend's dramatic elections in Brazil and Serbia showed that voters can see through such subterfuge, with a Democratic landslide likely if US voters follow their counterparts' lead.
Trump's war of choice against Iran has inflated energy prices, as Iran predictably responded by restricting shipments in the strait of Hormuz. Yet Trump, never one to admit error, needed a scapegoat. Enter Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose forces have been damaging the Russian economy by attacking its oil refineries while holding off Russian troops in the Donbas region.
Trump's Ukraine Blame Game
Trump is trying to blame the inflationary surge in US gasoline and diesel prices on Ukraine's attacks on Russian refineries, even though their effect on the global market is small compared to the diminished flow through the strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Putin has attacked Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure, hoping a freezing populace will pressure Zelensky to capitulate.
He has authorized the purchase of diesel fuel from Russia, financing Putin's attacks on Ukrainian cities. The gesture will not noticeably reduce market prices before the midterms, but it allows Trump to make a nod of acknowledgment toward the affordability crisis that he normally derides.
Pro-Russia Shift
Trump has openly sided with Russia by waiving new sanctions that had just been adopted by overwhelming Congressional majorities in the name of the late senator Lindsey Graham. The administration also suspended delivery of defensive missiles to Ukraine and early-warning intelligence of Russian attacks just as Putin intensified his bombing of Ukrainian cities.
Trump reportedly greenlit Elon Musk's decision to slow Starshield, the version of Starlink satellite internet service that Ukraine's military depends on for its drones. Trump called for an "energy ceasefire" that only targeted Ukraine's attacks on Russian oil refineries, not Russia's attacks on Ukrainian civilians.
Democratic Response
If Democrats take control after the midterms, they could re-enact the sanctions legislation without the traditional national-interest waiver that Trump invoked to ignore them. If they can secure a veto-proof two-thirds majority, Trump would be stuck with it, potentially breaking his aura of being beyond restraint.
A successful rectification of US policy toward Ukraine might be followed by bills that limit Trump's tariff authority or curtail funds for his potential continued conflict with Iran. Ukraine remains on the frontline of the global defense of democracy, and Congress may take matters into its own hands under Democratic leadership.
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