“Pretend please that I’m on the ballot!”—failed real estate mogul donald trump, in urging voters to elect Republican candidates for Congress, Park City, Kansas, October 19, 2026.

“Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine.”—failed president donald trump, in shifting America’s allegiance from a country that has bravely fought off an invasion to one led by a ruthless dictator who’s raped, murdered, and devastated Ukraine in 5 years of war, October 19, 2026, the same day a Russian drone strike on a park in Kharkiv Oblast killed six people, including an 8-year-old child and a baby.

It’s official.  To anyone who still somehow doubts that an American president is beholden to a dictator, the evidence is now clear.  Donald trump has officially announced his support for Russia in its 5-year ruthless (and to date, largely unsuccessful) invasion of Ukraine.

For those with incredibly short memories, either because of ineptitude or by choice, I’ll give you a quick refresher.  On February 24, 2024, after lying to the world about his intentions, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.  It quickly gobbled up 15% of Ukrainian territory.  The rest was supposed to be a pushover, with Ukraine falling within days.  It didn’t happen.

Since then, Putin has ruthlessly bombed homes, schools, and hospitals, kidnapped Ukrainian children to indoctrinate as Russian (it’s called human trafficking), emptied out prisons to provide frontline cannon fodder (losing soldiers at the rate of 1,000 per day), allied with North Korea in exchange for more troops, kidnapped African workers to provide even more troops, allied with Iran to procure drones (while giving Iran technology that can be used against our troops in the middle east), and threatened to use nuclear weapons in Europe.

What’s not to like about the guy?  No wonder trump loves him!

Despite this, Ukraine has held out, effectively fighting the more powerful invaders to a draw.

And they’ve done it alone, through sheer grit, determination, and resolve.  Not a single European or American soldier has been killed.  Yes, western nations (at least nations who actually care about freedom, justice, and democracy) have contributed money, aid, and arms.  But unlike Viet Nam, Afghanistan, and the Balkans, no troops outside of Ukraine have had to put boots on the ground.  Ukraine has done it alone, with only our financial and logistic support.

Until now.  Over the past 2 years, trump has slashed assistance to Ukraine, condemned its leaders, mocked its people, and bent over backwards making excuses for Putin.  And in the past weeks, he has ignored sanctions imposed by Congress, channeled billions of dollars to Russia in the form of diesel purchases (with no impact on American diesel prices), restricted the use of satellite technology to track incoming Russian missiles, openly knifed Ukraine in the back, and now is embracing a trilateral meeting involving the U.S., Russia, and China to decide Ukraine’s fate.

Who’s missing?  Ukraine.

Of course, to anyone paying attention, none of this is surprising.  On an earlier visit to Washington, Ukrainian president Zelensky was snubbed by trump at the airport, while Putin was greeted with a red carpet and a bear hug.  Putin was feted like a celebrity, while Zelensky was ridiculed by trump, as well as his vice-president-turned-fashion-maven, j.d. vance. 

The facts speak for themselves.  From the outset, trump has favored a Russian victory, in the process destroying decades of U.S. commitment to justice, freedom, and worldwide security.

Remember trump’s “deal” on Afghanistan?  The negotiations between the U.S., the Taliban, and Pakistan?  The Afghan government wasn’t even included.  And the “deal” included nothing to preserve human rights, rights for women, or safety under the Taliban.

If this isn’t a predictor of what trump’s “deal” with China and Russia regarding Ukraine would be, I don’t know what is.

Today, the lives of 38 million Ukrainians hang in the balance as Russia’s invasion wears on.  Military weapons and aid from the west are essential to their defense.  Even America’s Republican congress has voted to increase aid to Ukraine, as well as slap broader sanctions on Russia.

trump, of course, has ignored both.

Here in Nebraska, where Republicans hold all senate and house seats, none of those running for re-election have had to guts to speak up against the actions of Cadet Heel Spurs.    Here, the only voice has been that of Congressman Don Bacon, who isn’t even running for re-election.

Instead, Republicans chase squirrels.  Deport immigrants!  Ban transgenders!  Ban books!  Don’t teach anything that’s not MAGA approved!

None of these things endanger our nation like a ruthless dictator who’s threatened our allies and supported countries who openly kill our troops and aim nuclear weapons at our cities.

No, that’s actually not true.  One other thing is an even greater threat.  It’s a president who openly provides “aid and comfort” for that same dictator.  The U.S. Constitution has a name for this.

It’s called treason.

So go ahead.  Fret about the squirrels, if you want.  But come election day, be honest enough to admit the truth.  A vote for a trump-enabler isn’t just a vote for trump. 

It’s a vote for Putin.

And if you’re still undecided, think about those dead Ukrainian children.  Then take a hard look in the mirror and ask yourself this.

Just who is it that’s looking back at you?

Post-script:  For those who might actually care about human life, here’s a picture of little Anhelina, the Ukrainian baby killed by that Russian drone.  She was sitting in a stroller, on a walking path in a city park.  The drone circled the park before selecting her and others as its target.  If you still support this, may God forgive you. Or not.