The recent decision by Donald Trump to cut a six-month sanctions-waiving deal with Vladimir Putin to import millions of barrels of Russian diesel fuel is the latest episode in a global geopolitical clown show, and not the funny kind. In fact, the evil kind. By tossing the Kremlin an economic lifeline, this administration is actively funding the very Russian military complex that is flattening Ukrainian cities. And guess what, this desperate stunt is only projected to lower U.S. diesel prices by a measly 10 to 20 cents per gallon (per head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy), and consumers won’t even see that minor relief at the pump until late November or December 2026 once the tankers actually arrive. It is a massive strategic and moral surrender in exchange for absolute pocket change.
Compounding this circus is Trump’s absolute refusal to accept reality. Before jetting off to a rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, he shamelessly blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for starting and continuing the war—completely erasing the basic historical fact of a brutal, unprovoked Russian invasion. Hard to tell how much of this is Trump’s ignorance, or part of his greater psychological ailment, or a corrupt money-making scheme, or perhaps Trump’s continuing grudge against Zelensky for not bending so easily to demands he gin up an investigation on Joe Biden in Trump’s first term. If there is any silver lining, it is that Trump’s ill intent is somewhat mitigated by his utterly incompetent staff, whose sheer inability to coordinate policy ensures this chaotic administration constantly trips over its own feet. The rest of the free world looks on in horror.
Trump is again totally undercutting Congress. Just last month, the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act—a bipartisan bill championed in his final days by the late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham—was overwhelmingly passed and signed into law. The framework designed by Graham and Senator Richard Blumenthal was supposed to place an absolute economic stranglehold on Moscow’s energy exports. For Trump to immediately overrule and go counter to this new legislation is an insane abuse of executive authority. For crying out loud, he just signed the bill.
US GOVT CLOWN SHOW TIMELINE (FALL 2026)
— August 2026 ───► The Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act passes the Senate with an overwhelming bipartisan 86-11 vote.
— September ─────► Bipartisan delegation tours Ukraine; Congress passes and Trump signs the finalized Russia Sanctions Act into law.
— Oct 8-9, 2026 ─► Bicameral U.S. delegation meets Zelenskyy in Kyiv to back expanded defense tools and reinforce the newly enacted sanctions legislation
— Oct 9, 2026 ────► Trump announces his diesel deal with Putin mere hours after lawmakers meet with Zelensky
Trump’s unilateral waiver also completely blind-sided the bicameral, bipartisan congressional delegation that was in Kyiv. Led by lawmakers including Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Representative Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), the delegation was on the ground assuring Ukrainian officials of unwavering U.S. solidarity. They explicitly argued that using the newly passed Lindsey Graham sanctions bill was the only way to build real leverage and force Moscow to the negotiating table. Meanwhile, literally hours later on the same day as our lawmakers were meeting with Zelensky in Kiev, Trump announces his diesel side-deal with bromance buddy Putin and gives a big middle finger to the US Congress, the American people, and the free world.
Good luck everybody
