President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine appears to have become nearly the latest of a long line of American allies, many of them autocrats like himself, who were told the U.S. would always look out for them only to be kicked to the curb after they were no longer useful to the United States.
Of course it’s galling to see Donald Trump shake down his ally Ukraine for a massive share of its mineral resources. But let’s not forget, Joe Biden set the stage by offering assistance to Zelensky in the form of a loan rather than a grant.
Trump’s decision to cut weapons sales to Ukraine means that a war that would have ended up in defeat years from now will end up in defeat now, instead. Sadly, billions of dollars in weapons sales will be lost.
Live at 10 am Eastern/9 am Central time, and Streaming 24-7 Thereafter:
When the Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2022, the U.S. and the West promised to help Ukraine win. But they only provided enough weapons for parity, turning the conflict into a meat grinder of attrition. And the Biden Administration didn’t just give money and arms to Ukraine—they were loans. Now that Ukraine has clearly lost to Russia, you’d think Russia would ask for money as reparations, but it’s not. Instead, in an act that would have even shamed the British Empire at the height of its colonial era, the Trump Administration is calling in the U.S. debt by forcing Ukraine to turn over a substantial percentage of its mineral wealth, crippling the Ukrainian economy during its postwar reconstruction phase.
On today’s episode of “The TMI Show,” Ted Rall and Manila Chan discuss the bizarre and embarrassing specter of a superpower shaking down its defeated ally.
Live at 10 am Eastern/9 am Central time, and Streaming 24-7 Thereafter:
The United States and Russia have moved toward a total reset in Riyadh, agreeing to work together on ending the Russo-Ukrainian war, financial investment, eliminating sanctions and re-establishing normal relations. The meeting was striking after three years of American efforts to isolate Moscow. After more than four hours of talks, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that both sides had agreed to work on a peace settlement for Ukraine as well as to explore “the incredible opportunities that exist to partner with the Russians,” both geopolitically and economically.
“We weren’t just listening to each other, but we heard each other,” Sergey V. Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, said.
The meeting signaled Trump’s intention to reverse the Biden administration’s approach, which focused on sanctions, isolation and sending weapons to Ukraine.
What’s the next step? What will peace look like? What role will Ukraine itself have in the negotiations? What will it take Europe to sign off? Do they have to?
On “The TMI Show” hosts Ted Rall and Manila Chan talk to Ukrainian whistleblower Andrei Telizhenko about what comes next.
Live at 10 am Eastern/9 am Central time, and Streaming 24-7 Thereafter:
The deep freeze in U.S.-Russian relations is about to thaw out bigly.
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump talked for about an hour and a half yesterday, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. The call was “lengthy and highly productive,” Trump said on Truth Social. “We discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, Energy, Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Dollar, and various other subjects.” They agreed that they “want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the War with Russia/Ukraine,” Trump added, announcing an “immediate” start of negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict.
The two men discussed the Middle East and Iran’s nuclear program and agreed to visit one another in person.
What’s next for Russia, the U.S. and Ukraine? Political and international relations expert Mark Sleboda joins Ted Rall and Manila Chan on “The TMI Show” to figure that out.
Live at 1 pm Eastern/12 noon Central time and Streaming anytime after that:
Editorial cartoonists Ted Rall (on the Left) and Scott Stantis (on the Right) break down Donald Trump’s first week as president. From pardons to executive orders to cabinet appointments to the inauguration to domestic and foreign policy legislation, what does what we’ve seen so far augur for the next four years of the Trumpian restoration?
On the DMZ America podcast, political cartoonists Ted Rall (from the Left) and Scott Stantis (from the Right) let you know how they see things without indulging in the usual fussing and fighting.
Live at 10 am Eastern time/9 am Central time and Streaming 24-7 thereafter:
After being unanimously confirmed, Secretary of State Marco Rubio immediately met with his “Quad” counterparts from Australia, India and Japan, signaling a focus on China. Rubio also supervised a 90-day suspension of all foreign aid payments.
In the Middle East, Trump said that he was not optimistic about the prospects for the new ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, and eliminated Biden’s sanctions against some West Bank settlers accused of violence against Palestinians. Meanwhile, Israel appears to be taking advantage of the ceasefire to escalate military attacks and settler violence in the West Bank. Will Trump, an ally of Israel, be able to rein in Netanyahu?
Trump plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the next few weeks and said that they will discuss bringing an end to the war in Ukraine. Most experts believe that Russia will wind up with about a fifth of Ukrainian territory and a guarantee that a rump Ukraine will not join NATO.
Nick Cruse of the Revolutionary Blackout Network joins “TMI Show” hosts Ted Rall and Manila Chan to discuss the state of the world and the American role under Trump.
This morning at 10 AM Eastern time and streaming 24-7 thereafter anytime:
Donald Trump becomes the first president since 1893 to return to office after having lost an election and sitting out for years. What can we expect from his second term?
“The TMI Show”’s Ted Rall and Manila Chan analyze the prospects for the new administration’s economic policies and their chances for success amid a clear division within their own party about whether to go with trickle-down economics or populist economics. What about those mass deportations? Not to mention the price of eggs.
On the foreign-policy front, Trump promised to fix the Ukraine war immediately after taking office. Will it be done by tomorrow? Will the first phase of the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas hold, and will there be a second and third one? Will there be a trade war with China?
The Russo-Ukrainian War has entered a new phase, in which Ukraine’s Western allies are finally acknowledging that Russia, which controls 35% of Ukrainian territory, is prevailing and will likely win in the end. Trump has signaled that the blank check of weapons and money to Kyiv is about to expire and that he wants a peace deal. Putin has responded that Russia is ready to negotiate. Zelensky says he’s willing to talk. So, will peace talks actually happen? If so, how are they likely to conclude?
A side show to the conflict has been Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk Region of Russia. Russian and allied North Korean forces have encircled the Ukrainians occupying Russia, and Ukraine has made much of the North Korean presence, though it’s not clear what their point is.
“The TMI Show”’s Ted Rall and Manila Chan check in with Mark Sleboda, international relations and security analyst, on the state of the Ukraine War.
