President Donald Trump had promised to bring an immediate end to the conflict in Ukraine on his first day back in office. Now, almost 95 days later, peace remains out of reach and even some at Fox News are openly acknowledging that Trump is being embarrassed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Brian Kilmeade, a longtime Trump supporter, said on Fox & Friends Friday morning that “Vladimir Putin, I think to a degree, is embarrassing President Trump.” His comments came in reaction to Russia’s latest deadly attacks on Kyiv, which began Wednesday and continued into Thursday. The airstrikes, the worst assault on the Ukrainian capital since July 2024, left at least 12 dead and another 90 injured.
In a notable break from his more restrained recent comments on Russia, Trump criticized Putin in a Truth Social post on Thursday, writing, “Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP!” Trump warned that further aggression would lead to sanctions, hinting that “things will happen” if the attacks continue but stopping short of detailing the measures. He stressed that continued Russian aggression was undermining peace efforts and concluded his post with an urgent plea: “Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”
Kilmeade emphasized that the Russian bombardment was clearly designed to “pressure the U.S.” and noted that Trump’s criticism of Putin was a necessary move. Kilmeade has consistently warned against trusting Putin, even when some of his Fox colleagues pushed back. In March, he bluntly called Putin “the bad guy,” prompting co-host Lawrence Jones to suggest they didn’t need to repeat that daily. Kilmeade firmly stood by his position, saying, “If he’s going to embarrass the president, the president let him know yesterday he blasted him.”
Trump’s struggles to assert control over the Ukraine situation, combined with his public flip-flopping between criticizing and attempting to negotiate with Putin, are adding to concerns about his leadership both at home and abroad. Even some of his most loyal media allies are growing more vocal about the challenges he faces, highlighting the political risks as his second term continues to unfold.
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