Editor’s Note: From the Back Forty is Liberty Nation’s longest-running and most popular weekly column.
Heartlanders, still reeling from the torrent of DOGE exposures, had a peek inside the Art of the Deal as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky paid a visit to the Oval Office and was sent packing after poking the wrong bear. Additionally, newly minted Attorney General Pam Bondi had folks up in arms for dangling the Epstein files “bombshell” all week long, then fumbling the ball on the first-yard line. No one From the Back Forty has time or patience for a tease. And one baseball legend will finally be awarded the respect he deserves, thanks to Donald Trump.
President Volodymyr Zelensky showed up to a meeting on America’s most hallowed grounds, appearing as if he and Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) had just played a round of golf. The Ukrainian commander-in-chief, dressed in casual, somewhat athletic-looking attire, attempted to plead his case to the American people to fund his fight against Russia. As folks in middle America often say, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” Maybe that adage doesn’t translate into Ukrainian well, as Zelensky tossed the virtual vinegar at Trump in America’s house.
The Oval Office was packed with people, including invited press, Vice President JD Vance, and Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, who appeared to want to be anywhere else at that moment in time. As Zelensky poked and prodded, Vance called him out for disrespect: “I’m talking about the kind of diplomacy that’s going to end the destruction of your country. Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media.”
Mike Hobbs, a rancher in Eastern New Mexico, was inspired: “JD Vance has mettle! Zelenskyy obviously arrived to collect more of our tax revenue, not seek peace and an end to the fruitless killing. I am exceedingly proud of Trump and Vance for staying focused. It has been a very long time since I have felt ‘stood-up-for’, aside from my bride! I am beyond grateful for Trump’s and Vance’s decorum today.”
Trump was frustrated. “We have empowered you to be a tough guy … You either make a deal, or we are out. You don’t have the cards,” he told the Ukrainian president before kicking him out of the meeting. Markarova did a facepalm that went viral – so much for diplomacy.
If anything, it was great TV. Within minutes of his eviction, Zelensky had apparently done a bit of introspection and posted a big thank you to America and POTUS for a great visit, insisting Ukraine wants lasting peace.
Chad Smith of North Carolina had his say, too. “When Zelenskyy began appealing to the emotions of the American people, JD Vance stepped in, accusing him of disrespecting Donald Trump. This was brilliant strategy,” wrote Smith. “It’s important to understand that Zelenskyy is trying to gain access to NATO. If Ukraine joins NATO, the U.S. would be bound by NATO’s collective defense agreement—an attack on one is an attack on all.”
In Illinois, Kelly Wilson simply advised: “You should not bite the hand that feeds you.”
When Attorney General Pam Bondi released her big reveal of The Epstein Files: Phase 1, the highly anticipated “gotcha” filled with “breaking news” that would “make you sick” was, in fact, a heavily redacted nothing-burger. Mostly, the binders contained blacked-out pages and flight logs that had already been made public.
That didn’t sit well with anyone, friend or foe.
“THIS IS NOT WHAT WE OR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ASKED FOR and a complete disappointment,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) wrote on X. “GET US THE INFORMATION WE ASKED FOR!”
Bondi turned the tables and claimed the FBI had withheld “thousands of documents.”
“Late yesterday, I learned from a source that the FBI Field Office in New York was in possession of thousands of pages of documents related to the investigation and indictment of Epstein,” Bondi wrote, according to the screenshot. “Despite my repeated requests, the FBI never disclosed the existence of these files.”
But wait a minute: Who is the boss, Ms. AG?
In Vallecito, CO, Sue Shanley wants names – not political protections: “Regardless of political affiliation…if a person was doing illegal stuff, name them! Go for prosecution!”
In the Four Corners, Paul Hayes was ready to take everyone to Gitmo: “Get the dirty alphabet boys and lock them up.” Scott Merritt also jumped on that train in Ohio: “Raid that office like the democrats would.”
This week, the president reiterated that the late Pete Rose, the all-time hit king in Major League Baseball, must be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Nicknamed Charlie Hustle, Rose set MLB career records, including 4,256 hits. “Over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
Heartlanders were supportive. In Zanesville, OH, Deborah Sherfy Merris piped up: “With all the crap that other athletes have done and got by with it, why is he still being punished?”
This Caddo Mills Texan, who uses the handle Chunk Y Tuna, had a thought: “If we are going to judge him, we need to start judging the politicians (99%) that bet on the businesses they regulate in the stock market!”