Pence says isolationists losing sway with Trump as he praises moves on Ukraine, Iran
CNN
Former Vice President Mike Pence says he thinks isolationists “may have lost some of their footing” in President Donald Trump’s administration, as he praised Trump’s tougher talk toward Russia’s Vladimir Putin and his decision to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities.
Former Vice President Mike Pence says he thinks isolationists “may have lost some of their footing” in President Donald Trump’s administration, as he praised Trump’s tougher talk toward Russia’s Vladimir Putin and his decision to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities. Pence, since his split with Trump after the 2020 election, has often criticized the president’s approach to Russia and his tepid support for Ukraine. But he told CNN’s Kate Bolduan in an interview Thursday he hopes Trump is “starting to recognize” that Putin is not interested in a negotiated end to the war he started in Ukraine. And he praised Trump’s decision this week to reverse his administration’s pause on some weapons shipments to Ukraine, including air defense missiles. “While I had concerns and expressed them in those first 100 days about the president’s kind of ongoing hope and desire for a negotiated settlement, I welcome his decisions this week and his rhetoric,” he said. Pence said Trump’s sharper criticism of Putin and support for Ukraine could be the result of Trump tuning out those advocating isolationist policies after some criticized the United States’ direct military involvement in Israel’s efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions. “I think what may have changed is that some of the isolationist voices in and around this administration have recently condemned the president’s correct and courageous decision to launch a military assault against Iran,” Pence said. “I think they may have lost some of their footing with the president.”
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