Overview

• Trump said he’s known Putin for years but lamented that the Russian leader is now “sending rockets into cities and killing people” and has “gone absolutely crazy.”
• Fox News analyst Brit Hume challenged Trump’s comments by noting Putin has always been a “brutal dictator” and questioned the president’s understanding of the Russian leader.
• Over the weekend, Russian airstrikes on Kyiv killed at least a dozen people, intensifying pressure on Trump’s pledge to broker a peace deal to end the war.
• During his 2024 campaign, Trump promised to end the Ukraine conflict on his first day back in office but has been unable to halt the fighting.
• Hume urged Trump to translate his criticism into action by using U.S. military or economic leverage to bolster Ukraine and deter further aggression.