CNN
By Betsy Klein, Alison Main and Aileen Graef, CNN
(CNN) — The White House is making clear it views President Donald Trump’s Friday Oval Office showdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as an overwhelming win that underscores Trump’s “America first” leadership, dispatching top officials and allies to amplify Trump’s handling of the situation even as European leaders are expressing unified support for Ukraine and its leader.
Trump often took aim at US aid for Ukraine on the campaign trail, reflecting waning support among Americans for Ukraine and Zelensky over the past three years of the war. Trump views the conflict through an economic lens, seeking to rebuild a partnership with Russia and recoup some of the financial support the US has provided to Ukraine.
The president’s top lieutenants, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — all of whom were in the Oval Office during the explosive meeting — appeared on news shows Sunday to offer praise to their boss and criticism of his Ukrainian counterpart as Trump is dramatically reshaping US alliances.
The efforts come as dozens of European leaders are gathering in London for what British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described as a “once-in-a-generation moment for the security of Europe,” a major show of support for Zelensky.
“I hope you know that we are all with you and the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes, everyone around this table,” Starmer said in opening remarks at the Sunday summit.
Trump’s team, meanwhile, is doubling down, framing the contentious Friday meeting from a position of US strength, even as it has been met with glee by the Kremlin.
During an appearance on “State of the Union,” Waltz indicated US support for new leadership in Ukraine.
“We need a leader that can deal with us, eventually deal with the Russians and end this war,” Waltz told CNN’s Dana Bash on Sunday.
“And if it becomes apparent that President Zelensky’s either personal motivations or political motivations are divergent from ending the fighting in this country, then I think we have a real issue on our hands,” Waltz said.
House Speaker Mike Johnson also suggested in an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Zelensky should potentially step aside after the tense meeting, saying, “Either he needs to come to his senses and come back to the table in gratitude, or someone else needs to lead the country to do that.”
Trump himself suggested after the meeting that Zelensky does not want an end to the war. Waltz said Sunday that the Ukrainian leader needs to make it clear “publicly and privately” that he is “ready to go to peace.”
Waltz, who compared Zelensky to an “ex-girlfriend that just wants to argue” earlier in the weekend, continued to slam the Ukrainian leader’s Friday actions and body language, castigating “the shaking of the head, the kind of — the arms crossed, we just — we found it incredibly disrespectful.”
Rubio also went after Zelensky, who, he said on ABC News’ “This Week,” “found every opportunity to try to ‘Ukraine-splain’ on every issue.”
And Lutnick cast Trump as “the peacemaker.”
“He’s the peacemaker, and if Zelensky is not interested in peace, then he should go home and think about it,” he told Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.”
The White House press office has also sent multiple emails amplifying warm reviews and messages of support from key Republican allies on Capitol Hill, members of Trump’s Cabinet and other top White House officials.
“Support continues to roll in for the unwavering commitment of President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Vance to the American people and the Trump Administration’s relentless pursuit of peace,” an email sent to reporters Saturday said, highlighting remarks from Johnson praising Trump for “putting America first”; from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard thanking Trump for his “unwavering leadership”; and from Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri asserting that “the age of ‘America last’ foreign policy is over,” among others.
Johnson, who spearheaded an effort to pass more aid to Ukraine last spring despite threats to his speakership from some hardliners in his own party, told Bash he had done so to “allow Ukraine to sustain itself and position them for peace negotiations” by extending support until Trump took office.
“The plan worked, but now Zelensky has to follow through, and the fact that he acted as he did, I think, was a great disappointment,” the Louisiana Republican said.
He said an assessment by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a frequent GOP critic of the president, that the Trump administration was “walking away from our allies and embracing Putin,” was “plainly wrong,” arguing that Trump, who has hesitated to call Putin a “dictator,” has been “very clear” that the Russian president is an aggressor in Ukraine.
Former House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner, historically an avid supporter of Ukraine and hardliner on Russia, called Zelensky’s actions during the meeting with Trump “inappropriate.”
“You got to hear President Trump. I mean … he engaged by saying, you know, people are dying,” the Ohio Republican congressman said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We need to stop the dying. … Let’s go forward with the peace negotiations, and then we’ll determine what security arrangements need to be made around the peace negotiations.”
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