On Tuesday, hours after releasing a statement claiming Russia would never invade Ukraine on his watch, Trump lauded Vladimir Putin’s plan to invade Ukraine as “genius” and dubbed the Russian leader “extremely astute.”
“I walked in earlier and there was a TV screen. I remarked, “This is genius,”‘ the former president told conservative podcaster, Buck Sexton.
Trump recalled, “Putin declares a significant section of Ukraine as independent.’ Oh, that’s fantastic.”
If Trump is a Russian asset, then why didn't Putin make the move to invade Ukraine when Trump was still in office? Democrats need to come to the realization that Joe Biden is a symbol of weakness. Period.
— Anita 🇺🇸 (@youngbiafra) February 23, 2022
Biden stated his government would use “every instrument at our disposal” to keep the impact on petrol prices in the United States to a minimum. Yet, he also admitted Americans will witness price increases at the pump.
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President Biden is being urged by legislators on both sides of the political aisle to impose strong sanctions on Russia after Moscow pushed soldiers into eastern Ukraine.
On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin dispatched soldiers to the pro-Russian areas of Luhansk and Donetsk, declaring them autonomous republics, separate from Ukraine.
Biden unveiled his ‘first round’ of sanctions on Tuesday. They included new financial limitations on two of Russia’s major banks, VEB, along with the military bank, as well as the isolation of Russia from Western financing.
Trump says Putin's military move on Ukraine is "genius."
"Putin is now saying, 'It’s independent,' a large section of Ukraine. I said, 'How smart is that?' And he’s gonna go in and be a peacekeeper… We could use that on our southern border."
"Here’s a guy who’s very savvy." pic.twitter.com/8vk9SWm3QO
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) February 22, 2022
On Monday, Biden announced further restrictions, forbidding trade with Kremlin-backed regions, but White House officials first were hesitant to characterize Putin’s operation as an “invasion.”
The Biden administration has stated sanctions are being used as leverage in order to avoid a full-fledged invasion.
“No, but consider it. Here’s a guy who knows what he’s doing,” Trump continued. “I’m pretty familiar with him. This would not have happened if I had been in office; it is unthinkable.”
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“However, here’s a man who says, you know, ‘I’m going to declare a large section of Ukraine independent.’ ‘We’re going to go out and we’re going to go in and we’re going to assist to keep the peace,” Trump continued.
“That’s got to be considered astute. Also, do you know what Biden’s response was? There was no answer. There wasn’t one available for that. No, it’s a pretty sad situation. It’s very sad,” the former president said about his successor.
Trump also referred to President Joe Biden as “a man who has no idea what he’s doing.”
Earlier Tuesday, Trump said if he was still president, Vladimir Putin would never have invaded Ukraine, and Russia has become “very, very rich” under President Biden.
“There was simply no way that the situation currently occurring in Ukraine should really have happened at all if properly handled,” Trump said in a statement released Tuesday.
“I know Vladimir Putin well, and he would never have done what he is doing now under the Trump administration. No way!”
