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Today, President Donald Trump ambushed Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky in an attack that seemed designed to give the White House an excuse for siding with Russia in its war on Ukraine. Vice President J.D. Vance joined Trump and Zelensky in the Oval Office—his attendance at such an event was unusual—in front of reporters. Those reporters included one from Russian state media, but no one from the Associated Press or Reuters, who were not granted access.

In front of the cameras, Trump and Vance engaged in what Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo called a “mob hit,” spouting Russian propaganda and trying to bully Zelensky into accepting a ceasefire and signing over rights to Ukrainian rare-earth minerals without guarantees of security. Vance, especially, seemed determined to provoke a fight in front of the cameras, accusing Zelensky, who has been lavish in his thanks to the U.S. and lawmakers including Trump, of being ungrateful. When that didn’t land, Vance said it was “disrespectful” of Zelensky to “try to litigate this in front of the American media,” when it was the White House that set up the event in front of reporters.

Zelensky maintained his composure and did not rise to the bait, but he did not accept their pro-Russian version of the war. He insisted that it was in fact Russia that invaded Ukraine and is still bombing and killing on a daily basis. His refusal to sit silent and submit meekly to their attack seemed to infuriate them.

Never forget February 28, 2025, a tragic day when an American president and his vice-president berated and betrayed a democratic ally in the midst of a barbaric war with Russia. Donald Trump’s abusive, demeaning behavior in our Oval Office—in the company of a genuine hero and defender of democracy like Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky—may be the most disgraceful public behavior by any president in our history. It’s hard to see how this grotesque stain will ever wash away.

JD Vance triggered the likely planned assault in front of the television cameras by calling Ukraine’s president “disrespectful,” telling him “you should be thanking the president.” Soon Trump was shouting at Zelensky, telling him that “you’re not really in a good position right now” and “you don’t have the cards right now.”

Ukraine’s leader tried to keep it rational as the aggression mounted. “I’m not playing cards,” he replied. “I’m very serious, Mr President. I’m the president in a war.”

The Americans claim that their attempt to humiliate the Ukrainian president in the White House yesterday was about peace. On that premise, nothing they said makes any sense.

The attempted mugging of a visiting president was about the world war that Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and JD Vance have chosen. If we attend to what Vance and Trump said yesterday, we can work our way to the unreason of American policy, and to the chaos that will follow.

JD Vance opened hostilities against Volodymr Zelens’kyi with a claim about negotiations with Russia, treating them as a formula that will magically end the war. Zelens’kyi had said, calmly and correctly, that negotiations with Russia have been tried before and have not worked.

But not from Vladimir Putin. There’s been no comment so far from the Kremlin leader.

Then again, he doesn’t really need to say anything. President Putin can afford to sit back and watch events unfold.

In my view, the only reason why Trump stretched out this White House meeting in front of the media to 50 excruciatingly long minutes (before they planned to begin negotiating this proposed deal in private), is to “litigate the deal” in front of the cameras with Zelenskyy. To bully and pressure him like Mafioso thugs to take Trump’s deal that would greatly favor him financially (and Musk’s AI empire takeover of the world).

Trump kept saying “raw earth” the entire meeting. “Raw earth”. What in the hell… I kept mouthing isn’t it “rare earth” as I watched. Rare minerals. Trump doesn’t even know the term! This is something that Elon Musk wants (lanthanum, cerium, neodymium and yttrium), and then the lithium they have in abundance for smartphones and batteries too, and Trump is doing the bidding of both Putin and Musk as our President.

Good Trouble: JD Vance Chastised by Vermont Snow Reporter
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Thank you, Lucy — that was wonderful.

The rest of the towns around here and in the surrounding area have turned out for protests as well… some pics and video here, here, and here.

Protestors organize in Waitsfield against vice presidential visit