Trump blames Ukraine for the war Russia started amid delicate ceasefire talks | Opinion
Secretary of State Marco Rubio practiced clear and commonsense diplomacy that was so far off-script from what we hear from President Trump all the time about Ukraine and Russia.
People often complain about Donald Trump’s capriciously unpredictable approach to the presidency. But there are times when he is completely predictable.
You just have to know when to listen for it, since Trump is easily provoked by both friends and foes.
Marco Rubio, the former senator from Florida now serving as secretary of State, was in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, negotiating with Ukrainian officials about how to end the war that started with Russia's illegal invasion.
Rubio and Mike Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, took great pains to repeatedly praise Trump in a news conference while announcing that Ukraine had agreed to a temporary ceasefire.
But Rubio went further – commending Ukraine for taking a "concrete step" toward ending the war while also suggesting that Russia would be "the impediment" to peace if it rejected the ceasefire.
Trump would never speak as Rubio did about Ukraine or Russia. He threw a full-blown Oval Office tantrum just two weeks ago when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy correctly noted that Russia can't be relied on to live up to international agreements.
It was jarring to hear Rubio practice clear and commonsense diplomacy that was so far off-script from what we hear from Trump all the time about Ukraine and Russia.
This question stuck in my head Tuesday: When would Trump try to blame Ukraine again for the war?
Does anybody believe Trump will hurt Russia?
Wednesday, was the answer. Trump, speaking in the Oval Office, referenced Zelenskyy's visit two weeks ago to circle back on blaming the Ukrainians when asked about the prospects of Russia accepting a ceasefire.
"As you know, I've always said that Ukraine might have been the more difficult party," Trump said. "I had somebody that didn't seem to want peace. Now he's agreed to peace. So we'll see what happens."
Let's review: Russia has repeatedly violated international law by invading Ukraine, and has violated previous ceasefire agreements during that time, but Ukraine looks like the warmonger to Trump because that country's president accurately points all that out.
Trump nodded three times Wednesday toward some financial sanctions he could levy on Russia if that country balks at a ceasefire. And then he promptly said – twice – that he doesn't want to use those sanctions.
Russia, if you're listening, there's no chance Trump hits you with those sanctions.
Trump doesn't just blame Zelenskyy for Russia's lethal aggression. He also blames any American president in the 21st century not named Trump.
Trump blames every other president for what's happening in Ukraine
Consider Russia's 2008 invasion of Georgia. Trump blames that on then-President George W. Bush. And with Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea in Ukraine, followed by the 2022 expansion of that assault, Trump blames former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
"I'm the only one that's dealt with him successfully," Trump said Wednesday of Russian President Vladimir Putin. "Bush didn't deal with him successfully. He dealt with him terribly. Got ripped off. And Obama was a disaster."
Trump, who notoriously sided with Putin – while standing next to him during his first term in 2018 – after America's intelligence agencies assessed that Russia had interfered with the 2016 presidential election, thinks his cozy confines in Putin's pocket is a measure of success.
"I don't see any reason why," Trump replied in 2018 when asked about that interference and acknowledging that his own national security aides agreed that it happened. If there were a Nobel Peace Prize for self-serving, willful ignorance it would have been awarded to Trump that day.
Trump will never blame Putin for the war that Russia started
There's something unmistakable in all that, and it points to Trump's view of international responsibility. He never blames Putin for what Russia does.
And Trump is never as angry as when someone suggests he is responsible for some bad action or outcome. This, he never forgets.
Remember who was on the other end of Trump's 2019 phone call that led to his first impeachment? It was Zelenskyy, being shaken down by Trump, who wanted to trade American assistance in the fight against Russia for Ukrainian help in digging up political dirt on Biden, then a contender for the Democratic nomination for president.
None of that is Zelenskyy's fault. But Trump, much like Putin, would never admit to any misdeed. So Russia, which might have helped Trump win the 2016 election, can do no wrong while Ukraine, which accidentally played a role in his impeachment, can do nothing right.
It's all so predictable, if you know when to listen for it.
Rubio tries his best to be an adult in a room of 'mean girls'
Something else stood out from Rubio's comments Tuesday, when the secretary of State was asked if Trump's relationship with Zelenskyy is "back on track" after the blow-up two weeks ago.
Rubio was in no mood for what Trump so often relishes, an attention-grabbing melodramatic angle.
"This is serious stuff, OK," Rubio said. "This is not 'Mean Girls.' This is not some episode of some television show."
That's exactly how Trump sees the world. He told top aides before his first term even began to, as The New York Times put it, "think of each presidential day as an episode in a television show in which he vanquishes rivals."
Consider how Trump wrapped up his unhinged harangue of Zelenskyy two weeks ago, turning to journalists in the Oval Office to declare: "I think we've seen enough. This is going to be great television."
There are more episodes ahead. Spoiler alert: Trump and Putin will star as the plucky heroes in Trump's narrative while Zelenskyy remains consigned to be the villain.
Follow Paste BN columnist Chris Brennan on X, formerly known as Twitter: @ByChrisBrennan