White House amplifies rave reviews for Trump’s handling of Zelensky showdown as Europe rallies around Ukraine
CNN
The White House is making clear it views President Donald Trump’s Friday Oval Office showdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as an overwhelming win underscoring Trump’s “America First” leadership, dispatching top officials and allies on the airwaves to amplify Trump’s handling of the situation even as European leaders are putting on a key show of force of unity for Ukraine and its leader.
The White House is making clear it views President Donald Trump’s Friday Oval Office showdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as an overwhelming win that underscores Trump’s “America first” leadership, dispatching top officials and allies to amplify Trump’s handling of the situation even as European leaders are expressing unified support for Ukraine and its leader. Trump often took aim at US aid for Ukraine on the campaign trail, reflecting waning support among Americans for Ukraine and Zelensky over the past three years of the war. Trump views the conflict through an economic lens, seeking to rebuild a partnership with Russia and recoup some of the financial support the US has provided to Ukraine. The president’s top lieutenants, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — all of whom were in the Oval Office during the explosive meeting — appeared on news shows Sunday to offer praise to their boss and criticism of his Ukrainian counterpart as Trump is dramatically reshaping US alliances. The efforts come as dozens of European leaders are gathering in London for what British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described as a “once-in-a-generation moment for the security of Europe,” a major show of support for Zelensky. “I hope you know that we are all with you and the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes, everyone around this table,” Starmer said in opening remarks at the Sunday summit. Trump’s team, meanwhile, is doubling down, framing the contentious Friday meeting from a position of US strength, even as it has been met with glee by the Kremlin.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth risked compromising sensitive military information that could have endangered US troops through his use of Signal to discuss attack plans, a Pentagon watchdog said in an unclassified report released Thursday. It also details how Hegseth declined to cooperate with the probe.
If nothing else, the controversy over the Trump administration’s second strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean has surfaced a long-overdue debate about its already legally dubious first strikes.
Two top House lawmakers emerged divided along party lines after a private briefing with the military official who oversaw September’s attack on an alleged drug vessel that included a so-called double-tap strike that killed surviving crew members, with a top Democrat calling video of the incident that was shared as part of the briefing “one of the most troubling things” he has seen as a lawmaker.
Authorities in Colombia are dealing with increasingly sophisticated criminals, who use advanced tech to produce and conceal the drugs they hope to export around the world. But police and the military are fighting back, using AI to flag suspicious passengers, cargo and mail - alongside more conventional air and sea patrols. CNN’s Isa Soares gets an inside look at Bogotá’s war on drugs.
Young Americans are “a generation under profound strain” with little confidence in institutions and widespread economic concerns, according to a Harvard Institute of Politics survey of adults younger than 30 released Thursday.
As lawmakers demand answers over reports that the US military carried out a follow-up strike that killed survivors during an attacked on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean, a career Navy SEAL who has spent most of his 30 years of military experience in special operations will be responsible for providing them.
The murder trial of Brian Walshe, who is accused of killing and dismembering his wife in 2023 continues. Follow for live updates.
The FBI arrested a person Thursday who investigators believe planted pipe bombs near the Republican and Democratic National Committee headquarters the night before the 2021 US Capitol riot.
Lawyers for the New York attorney general’s office are expected to appear in federal court in Albany on Thursday to try to disqualify a US attorney from investigating the state’s civil case against President Donald Trump.
A new poll shows more than 70% of Republicans with Obamacare coverage don’t want their enhanced premium subsidies to expire.
A safety volunteer accused of fatally shooting a man taking part in a “No Kings” protest last June in Salt Lake City while firing at another man he believed to be a potential mass shooter has been charged with manslaughter, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
The specter of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown looms over the Somali diaspora in the Twin Cities – home to the nation’s largest Somali population.
Honduras’ former President Juan Orlando Hernández thanked US President Donald Trump for pardoning his US drug trafficking conviction amid criticism from lawmakers that the pardon undermines the White House’s efforts to stop drug trafficking.