As you've seen, the much-ballyhooed meeting between President Trump, Vice President Vance, and Ukraine's President Zelensky didn't end well. The Ukrainian president, according to President Trump (and this writer), was disrespectful and seemed to massively overestimate his leverage over the United States. After a few increasingly heated exchanges, President Trump tossed the Ukrainian leader out on his butt.
President Trump, playing the news cycle like a boss, took to Truth Social and X to announce his take on the meeting:
"Fire and Pressure" is something of an understatement. Watch the many videos presented on all of RedState's coverage; it was a trifle surprising that no blows were exchanged. This was a far cry from the usual diplomatic saddle-soaping.
Some American officials have already replied to this imbroglio. Representative Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) was one of the first to weigh in:
There already has been funding to Ukraine to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars. What has the United States received in return? Not even an unconditional "Hey, thanks" from the Ukrainian president. Part of the purpose of this morning's meeting was to finalize a rare-earths mineral deal to partly recompense the United States for this while giving the two nations economic ties, but now that won't happen — at least not today.
Voice of America's Kari Lake also chimed in:
It's unclear at this juncture who's really ready for peace and who isn't. If Zelensky is holding out to get all of the Ukrainian territory now in Russian hands back, that probably isn't going to happen, and Ukraine is nearing the end of its logistical tether, even with U.S. support — and Russia isn't far from that pass, either.
Former National Security Advisor and commentator General Mike Flynn had this to say:
That's an interesting take because that's pretty much what happened, with the Ukrainian president making a hasty exit — with the lunch he was supposed to share with POTUS and VPOTUS reportedly still on the table and growing cold.
But leave it to Secretary of State Marco Rubio to say it pithily and yet eloquently:
Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
See Related: BREAKING: After Fiery Oval Office Exchange, Trump Sends Zelensky Packing
Zelensky Attempts Oval Office Grandstanding; Finds Out Trump and Vance Don't Play That Game
Of course, some Democrats also chimed in, promising that Ukraine's gravy train will keep rolling:
Former Ambassador John Bolton also chimed in and, like Senator Kelly, and as is his wont, embarrassed himself:
On Russia's side? Is he serious? And if he's making the case that sending billions to Ukraine without condition is in America's interest, I'd love to see him make that case to the voters.
As of this writing, there has not been any posting on X from the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson (R-LA), or the Senate Majority Leader, John Thune (R-CD). Stay tuned! It's an interesting day, and there will doubtless be more reactions. As to the eventual fallout from this dust-up, we'll see what happens next. But the one thing that is plain is this: The current situation can't stand.