Donald Trump has done it again. He has been elected the 47th President of the United States.
We have no choice. We must give Donald Trump a chance. But what does it mean to give Donald Trump a chance? For starters, not condemning him just because he is Donald Trump.
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Counterproductive contrarianism
Instead of engaging in counterproductive contrarianism and name-calling that has lost its power a long time ago, we ought to be asking: “What are the best ways to influence Trump, so he can make decisions in line with Ukraine’s interests?” Donald Trump says that he loves Poland. If so, then he surely understands Poland isn’t secure without a sovereign Ukraine.
Letting Russia win in Ukraine likely means Poland is next on Putin’s hit list.
We all know who Donald Trump is, who supports him, and what he stands for. But alienating him and his supporters only serves Russia. As POTUS, he is the decision-maker. Writing these words does seem surreal, but we’ll need to find a way to get through to Donald Trump somehow. Hoping that he’s going to be ousted from power is, frankly, a waste of time.
The 25th Amendment won’t work
Forget about the 25th Amendment, which makes it possible to remove the president if he is mentally unfit for office. It wasn’t used when Joe Biden was in the White House and it’s unlikely to even be considered to kick Trump out of the Oval Office. We are stuck with Donald Trump for four years and it’s up to us to devise a strategy that works best for Ukraine in these geopolitically precarious times.
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Hitler comparisons don’t work anymore
We need to stop mindlessly comparing Trump to Hitler and throwing words such as Nazi around. Even J.D. Vance compared Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler, but that was eight years ago in a dramatically different world.
While Donald Trump is many things, he isn’t responsible for waging genocidal wars and cracking down on the domestic opposition. That’s Vladimir Putin’s domain. We are yet to see what Donald Trump is capable of – but for now, comparing him to Adolf Hitler is extreme.
More justified would be comparisons with Benito Mussolini, who said in 1929 filmed address to the American people: “My fellow [Italian] citizens… are working to make America great.’”
The post-meaning world
Russian propagandists keep callously calling Ukrainians Nazis. We are not only in the post-truth world. We are also increasingly in the post-meaning world where words get thrown around without understanding and appreciating the gravitas behind them. Like “Nazi,” “genocide” used to be a word that carried a lot of weight.
Today, all too many people use words such as genocide as just another debate prompt, without giving it much, if any thought. The consequences are profound. The word that caused international alarm and condemnation isn’t as powerful as it once was. It has been propagandized. Relativized. Co-opted by Russian propaganda that twists its meaning to gaslight the naive, the deluded, or just plain dumb, who truly think Ukraine is full of bloodthirsty Nazis and Russia is the victim of Ukrainian crimes and terrorism.
Most of us only interact with those who are already aware of how vital it is to help Ukraine win. We are preaching to the proverbial choir, on social media and elsewhere, but we need to ensure that our message reaches those who don’t necessarily agree with us and can somehow still be reasoned with. We have no choice but to find a way to reason with Donald Trump.
Wild claims and no irrefutable proof
There are claims that Trump is a Russian asset. Such accusations require proof that can hold up in court. As yet, Donald Trump hasn’t been charged with treason, so walking around and calling him a traitor isn’t a sound strategy, no matter what we think of him. Such vitriolic and unfounded rhetoric alienates those who are willing to listen to our reasoning.
Great negotiator?
Donald Trump claims to be a great negotiator. If so, can he help bring back the abducted Ukrainian children and adults from Russia? Someone ought to explain to Trump that the US recognizing the occupied Ukrainian territories as Russian isn’t going to bring stability. The opposite is true.
Does Donald Trump really want a region next door to NATO that is going to be a hotbed of instability? That’s what’s going to happen with millions of Ukrainians left behind with no hope and no mercy from Russia. Putin hasn’t fully unleashed his fury on the occupied territories yet. He is assessing the situation for now, but with Trump’s blessing there won’t be anything to stop Putin from unleashing hell on the occupied territories. Millions of Ukrainians on the occupied territories could die.
But Ukraine won’t give up its land, no matter what Donald Trump wants. At the same time, the longer the occupied territories are under Russian control, the harder it’s going to be to bring them back to Ukraine. If Russia is allowed to win in Ukraine, the terrorist state will use the same playbook throughout the whole of Ukraine. Poland, Finland, and the Baltics will likely be next. We mustn’t forget that the December 2021 Russian ultimatum to the West still stands and Russia doesn’t want any NATO troops in countries such as Poland.
How will Donald Trump respond to the Russian ultimatum as Putin is sure to bring it up? Does Donald Trump know what he’s doing?
When someone tells you who they are, believe them
Donald Trump calls himself crazy. Threatening to bomb Moscow and Beijing certainly puts him in that category. That craziness, that aura of unpredictability, makes Putin and Xi Jinping afraid of him, or so he says, but the “crazy defense” can only get him so far. Russia and China will call his bluff, eventually, as they are less and less willing to believe that Donald Trump will act on his threats. Even if Donald Trump gave the order to bomb Moscow and Beijing, it’s highly unlikely that order would be carried out by his generals.
The “dark triad” world
The dark triad world has arrived: Pope Francis praises Russia’s so-called great culture; the UN Secretary General ignores Ukrainian peace initiatives and summits, yet happily travels to Russia; and now we have President Trump with murky ties to Russia.
If we don’t find a way to stabilize the world – and helping Ukraine win is a vital part of that process – the Doomsday Clock just might find itself tolling the midnight bell.
The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.
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