REPUBLICAN DON BACON: TRUMP IS BEING “DUPED BY PUTIN”
Republican Congressman Don Bacon has sharply challenged Donald Trump’s defense of his Russia policy, accusing the president of being misled by Putin and failing to recognize responsibility for Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“The President shows he’s being duped by Putin and doesn’t know who is at fault in this war,” Bacon wrote in response to Trump’s statement defending his approach to Moscow.
Bacon also accused Trump of contradicting members of his own administration over Russian assistance to Iran, concluding: “This will go down as a very embarrassing chapter in U.S. history.”
The criticism comes from inside Trump’s own party. It challenges the premise that easing pressure on Moscow while blaming Kyiv represents a credible path toward peace.
Trump argues that concessions help keep Russia at the negotiating table. But engagement must be judged by what it secures: whether Russian attacks stop, whether Ukraine becomes safer, and whether Moscow changes its demands. Keeping a conversation alive is not, by itself, evidence of progress.
For Ukrainians, these decisions have consequences far beyond Washington’s political arguments. Economic relief gives Russia commercial opportunities while Ukraine continues seeking the interceptors and dependable cooperation needed to protect its people.
Bacon’s intervention is a reminder that the administration’s position is being challenged by Americans who recognize the danger.
Russia invaded Ukraine. Any American policy that loses sight of that fact risks rewarding the aggressor while increasing pressure on the country fighting to survive.