Free Republic

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that if Russia rejected the 30-day U.S.-brokered cease-fire that Ukraine had accepted, “we’ll unfortunately know what the impediment is to peace here.” We knew that before, but now we know even on Mr. Rubio’s terms, as the Kremlin on Thursday said nyet. President Trump’s envoy, Steven Witkoff, is visiting Moscow, and the Kremlin welcomed him with the back of its hand. Yuri Ushakov, a close adviser to Vladimir Putin, told Russian television that a cease-fire would be “nothing other than a temporary breather for Ukrainian soldiers.” He added, “our goal is long-term peaceful...

High-profile MAGA personalities applauded Friday as President Trump escalated his hostility toward Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky. Mr. Trump wrote on social media that Mr. Zelensky “disrespected the United States in the cherished Oval Office” and “can come back when he is ready for Peace.” That followed a hostile meeting in which Mr. Trump and JD Vance berated and bullied Mr. Zelensky, with the vice president demanding: “Have you said thank you once?” In the days leading up to the meeting, Mr. Trump described Mr. Zelensky as a “dictator” and suggested that Ukraine started the war with Russia. Along with the...

If re-elected, would Donald Trump end U.S. support for Ukraine? He certainly sounds as if he would. On the campaign trail, he routinely describes Ukraine as a burden to the U.S. and declares his eagerness to see the war end, which he promises to achieve through negotiations in a mere 24 hours. Trump has also made clear his admiration for Vladimir Putin and dismissive attitude toward the European Union. Many observers worry that once back in office, he would condone, tacitly or even directly, Russia’s efforts to dominate Ukraine. But it wouldn’t be an easy move for Trump to make,...

In The Wall Street Journal’s latest poll of swing states, 74% of respondents said inflation has moved in the wrong direction in the past year. This assessment, which holds across all seven states, is startling, sobering—and simply not true. I’m not stating an opinion. This isn’t something on which reasonable people can disagree. If hard economic data count for anything, we can say unambiguously that inflation has moved in the right direction in the past year. In the 12 months through February, inflation, according to the century-old consumer-price index, was 3.2%, compared with 6% a year earlier. Use a slightly...