WHERE I STAND: A Disgraceful American Moment - October 20, 2026

He said he looks forward, does our president, to meeting with Putin without Zelensky, and he finds Putin's actions, which include war crimes, kidnapping of tens of thousands of Ukrainian children, and targeting of hospitals, schools, and senior centers, fine behavior.

Lest anyone think Trump is acting out of some dispassionate national self-interest, spare me.

By lifting a sanctions bill he signed just last month on Russia, a bill I may remind you named after his late friend Lindsey Graham, he is siding with a brutal dictator for what amounts to two days of diesel fuel.

Trump offered a nonsensical word salad to defend his amoral abdication, but when coupled with his blaming the victim routine against Zelensky and the sudden blackout of satellite warnings of incoming Russian attacks that left Ukrainians unprepared for deadly missiles on their capital city, it is clear he wants the Kremlin to defeat our European ally.

When he would be unlike any previous commander in chief, you probably need a shrink to explain.

His bizarre man crushes on autocrats like Putin and other global strongmen is both well-documented and really weird.

But it goes even beyond starry-eyed adoration.

To hear Trump tell it, we, the United States, should be grateful that Russia isn't helping Iran more than they already are in coordinating attacks on our troops there.

Trump said he doesn't want to do anything that will drive foolishly Russia away from the bargaining table.

Perhaps more importantly, he says Russia is doing very little of anything to help the Islamic Republic of Iran compared to what they could be doing.

"And I want to keep it that way, and will unless stupid people get in the way." End quote.

Zelensky, he said, doesn't want to end this war and probably never did.

How did we get to the point where an American president is groveling to reward the Kremlin for not going above and beyond in helping Iranians kill our soldiers? How did we get to the point where after our president announces an energy ceasefire, and then Russia preemptively attacks Ukraine the next day, leaving 600,000 people there without power and fridge attempts, our president then blames our ally for responding on their oppressor? How did we get to the point where that troll Musk is deciding, apparently either unilaterally or more likely at Trump's urging, to do Putin's bidding and turn off Starlink warnings for Ukraine, even though we gave them our word that we would let them know when the incoming was bound? This sleazy, grotesque chapter in history, I'm sure we'll come to learn once again will entail some form of Trump grift and family self-enrichment because, well, it's a Tuesday.