It has been more than 48 hours since convicted felon Donald J. Trump took the oath of office for his second presidential term on January 20. To nobody’s surprise, except his most delusional loyalists, the war in Ukraine was not brought to an end in his first 24 hours occupying the White House.
Trump had boasted repeatedly on the campaign trail that he could end the conflict within 24 hours of assuming the presidency. One of his most widely circulated quotes from last year was:
“If I were president, the war between Russia and Ukraine would end in 24 hours. It would be easy. I know exactly what to say to both sides.”
Yet the third day of his new presidency begins, and the bombs continue to fall. Ukrainian civilians are still fleeing for their lives, and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin remains as obstinate and hostile as ever.
Trump’s promise of an immediate end to the conflict has proven to be just another hollow piece of political theater in a career full of bogus claims. Not in one day or one hundred days could he ever be trusted to keep his word, except over issues where he profits from the suffering of regular Americans.
To call Trump a liar would be an understatement. He used the plight of the Ukrainian people and the looming European security crisis as a cheap talking point to dazzle his radical base. Trump cynically exploited the heartbreak that has enveloped an entire nation for nearly three years, ever since Russia launched its brutal large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Over the past year, Trump repeated his “24 hours” mantra on major news networks, at his White Nationalist campaign rallies, and during interviews with podcasters who fed off his autocratic brand.
The message was always the same: “I will solve this in one day.” Like a traveling salesman hawking a miraculous elixir, he insisted that his second inauguration would be the magical spell to stop Putin’s bloodshed.
SEEDS OF THE FULL-SCALE INVASION
In late February 2022, Putin launched an unprovoked and full-scale invasion across multiple fronts. Ukrainian cities like Kyiv, Kharkiv, Irpin, Bucha, and Mariupol became synonymous with relentless bombings, war crimes, and the massive displacement of civilians.
Western powers imposed crippling sanctions on Russia and provided materiel to Ukraine, to help it survive Putin’s violent land grab. As the death toll soared into the tens of thousands, Trump, who was at that time merely a private citizen, conveniently blamed the entire catastrophe on the supposed weakness of President Joe Biden.
Trump MAGA supporters parroted his line that “this never would have happened under President Trump,” ignoring all the ways Trump’s first term had emboldened and empowered Putin.
It was back in 2018, during a now-infamous press conference in Helsinki, that Trump stood alongside Putin and shamelessly sided with the Russian dictator over his own U.S. intelligence agencies regarding election interference.
Numerous instances in which Trump lavished praise on Putin have been documented over the years. Trump has called one of America’s greatest threats “very smart,” “savvy,” and “strong,” and heaped praise on the dictator’s invasion of Ukraine in the early days of the deadly campaign.
For years, Trump’s approach to Russia was saturated with complicity and flattery, effectively giving Putin moral license to test the boundaries of aggression. The seeds of today’s horrors were sown during Trump’s first term and nurtured behind the scenes since he lost the 2020 election.
Critics have often referred to Putin as being Trump’s “sugar daddy,” an exaggerated reference that underscored the coziness between the two men, with Trump repeatedly refusing to hold Putin accountable for anything.
Whether it was election meddling, the annexation of Crimea, or brazen human rights abuses, Trump was subordinate to Putin and notably followed any policy that served his interests – even when they conflicted with the United States and cost American lives.
Trump’s own former national security officials repeatedly expressed concern that the ex-president was far too comfortable letting Putin have his way. With that kind of permissive environment, it was no wonder that the Russian strongman felt emboldened to attempt to swallow up Ukraine.
TRUMP’S WORTHLESS 24-HOUR PLEDGE
Trump’s relentless campaign pledge throughout 2023 and 2024 repeated his declaration, “I’ll end the war in 24 hours.”
The soundbite was repeated ad nauseam and as an empty promise designed to project a strongman image. But now that his lies have caught up with reality, both he and his cult members are again trying to rewrite history.
Much like his other classic lies, like how “Mexico will pay for the wall,” his vow to resolve one of Europe’s worst humanitarian crises in a single day was never realistic. Trump never provided a concrete plan. He gave no detailed road map of how, with a snap of his fingers, he would force Putin to end his conquest to destroy Ukraine’s sovereignty.
He conveniently skirted the complexities of diplomacy, such as troop withdrawals, territory concessions, or the broader security guarantees that Ukraine has desperately sought. Security experts have commonly believed that Trump would ignore America’s commitment, abandon Ukraine, and force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept a deal that handed over Ukraine’s territory in the name of “peace.’
Almost three days into his presidency and the criminal elected to lead the United States has again failed to deliver. Not a single Russian soldier has retreated from occupied Ukrainian territory. Instead, the Russian military has even taken advantage of the political transition in Washington to consolidate its positions. The Ukrainian Armed Forces, still standing strong under President Zelenskyy’s leadership, have stated that they have seen “no change in Russia’s posture” since Trump’s inauguration.
What has Trump actually done in the first 48 hours to live up to his grandiose promises? Precious little. Trump has taken to social media to congratulate himself, mocked Americans who have made sacrifices for freedom, attacked the “fake news” for holding him accountable for his lies, and spewed more political rhetoric against the “deep state” and “radical Left” that has somehow impeded his success at ending the war in Ukraine.
A PRESIDENT WHO DOES NOT CARE
Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine continues with Russian forces showing no signs of abandoning their objectives. Putin, for his part, remains uninterested in giving Trump any quick political wins. His goal from Trump’s first term was to fracture the NATO alliance and push it over the edge.
Trump has repeatedly given aid and comfort to dictators, by sewing global mistrust in American leadership. Trump has always been more eager to tweet about personal feuds than to uphold the rules-based international order. The MAGA narrative that “only Trump could handle Putin” is laughable, and neither another 24 hours or 24 months will alter that reality.
It is painfully obvious that Trump’s promise to end the Ukraine war was not about humanitarian concern or visionary statesmanship. It was a selfish election tactic. He recognized that countless Americans, weary from years of international crises and skyrocketing global tensions, might be desperate enough to believe that he alone possessed the will and the toughness to force an end to the fighting.
But diplomacy is not about tough talk, it is about consistency, alliances, strategy, and, above all, honesty. All characteristics that President Biden showed during his term in office, whereas Trump has proven repeatedly that he lacks all of the above.
Even as the bombs continue to fall on Ukrainian cities, as families there struggle for survival amid blackouts and artillery fire, Trump has focused on grandstanding. He has continued his neverending rant about the injustice of any negative reporting about him. His narcissistic vanity and bruised ego have come before any serious diplomatic effort to help Ukraine.
The shallowness of Trump’s character is once again in full view, and the cost in human lives and suffering is immeasurable. Knowing the terrible things that Trump has done in office and as a private citizen, the American public still voted to return him to the leadership of the United States.
Those Americans own his shame as well, and cannot wash the blood from their hands. While they spar across the toxic landscape of social media, to score political points over whitewashing Trump’s promise to end the war in 24 hours, Ukrainians continue to die. Parents and their children remain surrounded by a landscape of war.
To betray Ukraine only follows the history of Americans betraying each other, starting with embracing hate over hope and celebrating Trump’s cruelty.
© Photo
Seth Wenig (AP), Rodrigo Abd (AP), Emilio Morenatti (AP), Vadim Ghirda (AP), Evgeniy Maloletka (AP), Julia Demaree Nikhinson (AP), Efrem Lukatsky (AP), and Alex Babenko (AP)
