Trump’s dangerous un-American rhetoric
On the evening of Feb. 23, people across the world were holding their breath. The international intelligence community was publishing Russia’s military plans before they executed them. Three hours before it happened, NBC News reported that the U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, believed that Russia would invade Ukraine before the night was over.
That same evening, it was warm and breezy in Palm Beach, Florida. There, at his Mar-a-Lago resort, former President Donald Trump spoke at a fundraising event.
As the world waited anxiously for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s move, Trump lauded the autocrat.
“[Putin’s] taking over a country for two-dollars worth of sanctions. I’d say that’s pretty smart,” Trump said. “He’s taking over a country, literally a vast, vast location, a great piece of land with a lot of people, and just walking right in.”
A few hours later, Putin delivered his own fiery speech, announcing a “special military operation” in Ukraine. Immediately afterwards, reports of explosions and missile strikes surfaced in multiple Ukrainian cities.
Ever since Trump announced his bid for the presidency in June 2015, all aspects of his life have come under intense scrutiny. From decades-old incidents to the present day, everything on record about Trump has gone under the microscope.
Much can be said about a wide variety of different features of Trump and his presidency, but the recent crisis in Ukraine sheds light on one feature in particular: Trump’s un-American rhetoric. Trump has long faced accusations of being pro-Putin, soft on Russia, and more, but his commentary and behavior surrounding developments in the Russia-Ukrainian War are especially inappropriate and unpresidential.
The U.S. has a long history as a defender of democracy, freedom, and national self-determination. Historically, the U.S. stands firmly opposed to tyranny and aggressive dictators on the world stage. In the past hundred years, America fought valiantly against Hitler’s Nazis in Europe, courageously battled Japanese imperialism in the Pacific, and outlasted totalitarian communism in the Cold War. The U.S. is founded upon ironclad principles and will fight to the death to protect her sacred ideals.
It is the existence of America’s great traditions which make Trump’s behavior and commentary repugnant. As a former president, Donald Trump should exude patriotism and be a living embodiment of these ideals which America holds dear. Recently, Trump’s actions and words have not simply fallen painfully short of what should be expected but have been antithetical to these standards.
For Trump to call Putin’s actions “smart” is appalling. Trump should stand vehemently opposed to virtually everything Putin has done recently in regards to Ukraine. Russia is, by all accounts, under Putin’s authoritarian control. Justified only by a state-orchestrated propaganda narrative riddled with lies, Putin has endangered countless lives, both Russian and Ukrainian, in the name of territorial conquest.
The defense offered by Trump-apologists is that Putin is indeed acting rationally given the situation he is in. How would Putin not be acting rationally, given that he does not care about Russia’s global ostracization, crippling sanctions, increased risk of large-scale international warfare, and the lives he will endanger? With this context, could his actions not be considered smart?
No! The word for this kind of behavior, when speaking from a perspective deeply rooted in American principles, is not “smart,” but “evil.” It is evil for Putin to not care about these things and carry out an unprovoked invasion of a self-determined nation. For such an important figure in American politics to be legitimizing Putin’s rationale in this circumstance is unfathomable. As Trump reflected on the vastness of the land and the mass of people which he expected Putin to “[walk] right in” and conquer, there was not an inkling of dismay regarding what is the most aggressive military play by a European authoritarian since World War II.
In addition to this problematic commentary, Trump has gone out of his way to use the situation in Ukraine to attack President Joe Biden as well. The same night as his speech at Mar-a -Lago, Trump called into Fox News to give an interview about the invasion after it began. Here, Trump claimed that “it all happened because of a rigged election.” Then, three days later, Trump spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, and repeated similar claims about how the invasion would not have happened had he been president. He also doubled down on calling Putin “smart” by referring to his plans “genius.”
The idea that a Trump presidency would have prevented this war has been parroted by conservatives since, and it too is distasteful.
First, it is impossible to know what would have happened in an alternate reality. The basis for such a belief requires exceptional faith in an understanding of Trump as a kind of strongman figure, striking fear into world leaders. Again, knowing what would have happened in an alternate reality is impossible, but when it comes to working with actual facts, it may be worthwhile to remember that Trump’s first impeachment came about after he strongly implied that he would withhold nearly $400 million of congressionally authorized military aid from Ukraine if their president would not announce an investigation into Joe Biden.
Second, the Ukraine crisis should not be a partisan issue. To turn the suffering of Ukrainian people (and many Russians, for that matter) into an opportunity for Trumpers to fantasize about how cordial international relations would have been had their guy won (if not for the rigged election, as the narrative goes) is pathetic. There is no reason why standing united against aggressive authoritarianism should not have been a unifying force domestically in a nation that is deeply fractured.
Trump has gone out of his way to divide Americans over suffering abroad and served to legitimize the actions of a ruthless dictator. As Republicans and Democrats alike look towards the future, they will need to ask themselves what kind of leadership is needed in this country. Unfortunately, the foundational principles of the nation are facing what is possibly their greatest threat in over 150 years, and it is uncertain which direction the country will go.
~ Johnathon McCartney ’25
