‘Conservatives are Pushing Back Hard’: Bret Baier Confronts Pro-Trump Senator Over Trump ‘Empowering Putin’
Bret Baier demonstrated fairness, balance, and unafraidness Thursday night when he amplified conservative criticism of President Donald Trump’s controversial Ukraine rhetoric to Senator Tom Cotton.
Trump’s curious pivot to blaming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy for an invasion of his country by the Russian military directed by Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent shockwaves around the world for several striking reasons, not least of which is Trump’s unsettling promotion of Putin talking points. There is also the dramatic shift in US foreign policy in which the Trump administration appears to be looking to reward a bad actor, aggressor, and alleged “war criminal” responsible for atrocities, including the kidnapping of 20,000 Ukrainian children.
Trump labeling a “dictator” has caused a significant rift in conservative circles, with a number of typically pro-MAGA voices, perhaps most notably Trump sycophant and Fox News host Mark Levin, who has criticized the White House in a manner heretofore unseen. Conservative outlets like the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and National Review have all piled on Trump. Fox News opinion hosts, however, have primarily avoided criticizing Trump on this, or any issue for that matter.
Baier asked his guest, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, if Trump’s rhetoric “hurts” the broader cause.
“Some noted conservatives are pushing back hard against the president,” Baier said before listing the criticism. “National Review says Ukraine didn’t start the war. Ukraine is not the problem,” before reading a quote: “‘In breathtaking remarks to reporters. President Trump poured contempt on Ukraine for its frustration. Ukraine didn’t fire Russian missiles at itself or direct a Russian armed column at its own capital in 2022. There’s moral equivalence, and then there’s total moral inversion.'”
“And then you’ve got Mark Levin, who says Zelensky is not a dictator,” Baier added before airing a clip of Levin saying:
Zelenksy ordered martial law. That’s what the Constitution they’re compelled. Zelinsky hasn’t called for an election. That’s what the Constitution there compels. I’m waiting for the first free election for Vladimir Putin. I mean, this is almost comical in a sick way that Putin is demanding an election. Why is he demanding an election in Ukraine when he doesn’t have free and real elections in his own country?
“So the going take is that this rhetoric, no matter if it’s negotiating, is empowering Putin in not a good way in their eyes,” Baier noted coming out of the clip.
“Well, Bret, I don’t think the president has empowered Vladimir Putin at all,” Cotton replied. “And again, if you look at what he did in his first term, it objectively was hostile to Russia. For instance, he leaned on Germany to stop the gas pipeline that made Germany so dependent on Russian gas. It caused Germany to kind of be soft on the potential invasion of Ukraine in 2021 and 2022. The president committed to more oil and gas production, both in his first term and his second term. That’s directly antagonistic towards Russia since they depend on oil and gas production.”
“The president supported throughout his first term the very weapons that allowed Ukraine to defend itself during the second invasion of Ukraine by Russia,” he continued. “So, again, I know there have been some sparks this week, but I suspect we’ll move beyond that pretty quickly because President Trump and President Zelensky have the same goal. I think that’s the goal of all Americans and Ukrainians, is to bring an end to the fighting, have a lasting truce, protect Ukraine’s sovereign independence, and prevent a third future invasion of Ukraine.”
Watch above via Fox News.
