In last night's debate between former President Donald Trump and CNN host Kaitlan Collins, oh wait... that's right... it wasn't a debate; it was a "town hall," and Collins wasn't Trump's opponent... she was a journalist! Yeah, that's right... a journalist.
Anywho... during the (bleep)show on CNN, the issue of Ukraine came up.
A member of the audience asked whether he supports providing military aid to Ukraine.
"We're giving away so much equipment. We don't have ammunition for ourselves right now," he said. "We don't have ammunition for ourselves. We're giving away so much."
He went on to say, about the war, "I'll have that done in 24 hours. You need the power of the presidency to do it."
Collins asked how Trump would accomplish such a goal. "They both have weaknesses, and both have strengths, and within 24 hours, that war would be settled," he repeated.
Collins then asked, "Do you want Ukraine to win this war?"
"I don't think in terms of winning and losing. I think in terms of getting it settled so we stop killing all these people and breaking down this country," he responded to a robust ovation from the assembled crowd.
Collins then eagerly interrupted him and demanded Trump take a particular side in the ongoing conflict.
"I want everyone to stop dying," he emphatically replied.
For some reason, this has raised the ire of such notable political commentators as Joe Scarborough, Bill Kristol and Rick Wilson... and if you've lost their support... well.
Perhaps I can explain the various reasons why this response is not only not controversial but also completely understandable, if not entirely laudable.
First, let's do some of Ms. Collins' research for her since she was too occupied with getting all of her January 6 Insurrection and classified document data points instead.
Mr. Trump is, in fact, on the record condemning Russia for their illegal, hostile invasion of Ukraine. At CPAC 2022, just days after the invasion, Trump was unequivocal.
"The Russian attack on Ukraine is appalling. We are praying for the proud people of Ukraine. God bless them all," Trump said at the time. I know; I was in the room. So were reporters from CNN, but they were probably too busy firing off articles about the MAGA fascists in attendance.
So for Collins now to feign that she's not sure who Trump wants to prevail is disingenuous at best, duplicitous more like it.
Also, about half of the country, though they are sympathetic to the Ukrainian cause, would be happy for negotiated peace at this time rather than a prolonged war, even if that war ends with a triumphant Ukraine.
Then there's the whole idea of what a "triumphant Ukraine" actually looks like.
Trump could have easily pivoted back to Collins when she asked if he wanted Ukraine to win by asking, "What, exactly, does 'winning' look like?"
It's pretty hard to find someone in Washington to explain how this war ends, let alone what a Ukrainian victory would entail.
If a Ukrainian win means full and unconditional surrender and a complete withdrawal of all Russian troops from all Ukrainian territory, including Crimea, well then it's worth noting that President Barack Obama and his Vice President Joe Biden allowed Russia to take Crimea without one ounce of support for Ukraine to defend herself.
If Trump is now compelled to only accept an outcome that even Obama was not compelled to support, what are we really doing here?
More importantly, though, think through the logic of Trump's position (something Collins, Kristol and every panel on every cable news network refuses to even attempt to do).
He says he wants to be in a position as president to negotiate peace between these two countries. If Trump is to re-take the world stage as the leader of the free world and negotiate a meaningful peace agreement, it would be catastrophic for him to take sides right now.
One can argue that if there is to be peace, the president of the United States will be a major player in the negotiating process. Isn't it advisable for whoever ends up being president to be seen as not already picking a winner in the fight?
Why is it hard for those who hold conventional political wisdom in Washington to understand this obvious fact? Answer? Because peace is not their priority, war is.
