Jon Stewart torches Trump’s dealings with Russia

Jon Stewart hilariously pulled out a Russian nesting doll to explain what he sees as the layers of stupidity in President Trump’s latest move involving Russia.   

“The Daily Show” host was reacting to the administration’s decision to ease sanctions on Russian diesel exports, even as Russia continues its war against Ukraine.  

Stewart responded to Energy Secretary Christopher Wright explaining the rationale on CNN:  

Wright: “This is a motivation for Russia to figure out how they can actually export some diesel.”  

Stewart: “Why would we motivate a group to sell diesel when we just put sanctions on them for selling diesel? Doing the opposite within a month is insane. It is illogical. It is incoherent!”  

Exactly — what exactly is America getting in return?  

The White House is under pressure to bring down fuel costs ahead of this midterm elections, with diesel prices now at record highs. But financial institutions like Goldman Sachs note that the Russia sanctions waiver might trim at most a penny or two per gallon, leaving consumers with no meaningful relief at gas stations.  

So Americans could get little relief at the pump while Moscow gets sanctions relief and another opportunity to negotiate directly with Washington on their terms only.  

Meanwhile, the relationship between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is deteriorating over intelligence sharing, sanctions, attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and the actual terms of a potential peace deal.  

On Monday, Trump questioned Zelensky’s understanding of the situation and suggested it was “time for somebody else to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine.”  

Zelensky has said he is open to negotiations, provided Ukraine’s security can be guaranteed, but that Ukraine cannot be expected to accept a peace deal negotiated over its head. And reports that Russia is exploring a summit involving Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping raise some serious concerns about who gets to determine Ukraine’s future. No European leaders have been invited to this meeting.  

Russian President Vladimir Putin may understand something Trump keeps overlooking: He doesn’t have to win every battle if he can persuade the American president to weaken the pressure on Russia and give Moscow a seat at the head of the table.  

Putin gets to pursue his military objectives while Trump gets to claim he’s working toward peace and claim he’s lower fuel prices. But if the economic benefits are marginal and Ukraine is pressured into concessions, all that’s happening is the U.S. is getting played for a fool and Ukraine is getting left out to dry.  

Diplomacy is necessary, but not without credible security guarantees — otherwise Ukraine and our other European allies will just be vulnerable to the next invasion when Russia feels like it. 

Lindsey Granger is a NewsNation contributor and co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising.” This column is an edited transcription of her on-air commentary.