Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a masterclass in diplomacy and common sense during his appearance on ABC’s This Week, dismantling Martha Raddatz’s weak attempt to paint President Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin as a loss for America. The liberal media, desperate to undermine Trump’s historic efforts to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, resorted to their usual hysteria—this time over a red carpet. Raddatz absurdly suggested that Putin “gained” merely by standing on the world stage alongside President Trump, as if the Russian dictator wasn’t already a central figure in global geopolitics. Rubio swiftly shut her down, pointing out the obvious:
“Putin is already on the world stage. He’s already on the world stage. The guy’s conducting a full-scale war in Ukraine. He’s already on the world stage. He has the world’s largest tactical nuclear arsenal in the world and the second largest strategic nuclear arsenal in the world. He’s already on the world stage.”
Rubio exposed the media’s hypocrisy, noting how they’ve spent years amplifying Putin’s influence by obsessively covering him—only to now feign outrage when Trump engages him directly to end a brutal war. The left would rather see endless conflict than give Trump credit for pursuing peace.
The Media’s Fake Outrage Over Diplomacy
The liberal press, led by figures like Raddatz, has been pushing a false narrative that Trump is “soft” on Russia while bullying Ukraine into a bad deal. But Rubio demolished this talking point, emphasizing that you cannot end a war without negotiating with the enemy.
“You’re not going to end a war between Russia and Ukraine without dealing with Putin. That’s just common sense. I shouldn’t even have to say it.”
Trump is the only leader with the strength and credibility to bring Putin to the table. Unlike the weak globalist approach of the Biden administration, which allowed the war to spiral out of control, Trump is taking decisive action to stop the bloodshed. The media’s faux outrage over a red carpet is a pathetic distraction from the real issue: their hatred of Trump outweighs their concern for peace.
The Left’s Dangerous Game: Prolonging War for Politics
Rubio also dismantled the left’s push for more sanctions, warning that such moves would sabotage peace talks and extend the war indefinitely:
“The minute you levy additional sanctions, strong additional sanctions, the talking stops. Talking stops, and at that point, the war just continues. You’ve probably just added 6, 8, 9, 12, more months to the war, if not longer. More people dead, more people killed, more people maimed, more families destroyed.”
The left claims to care about Ukraine, yet they advocate policies that would ensure more Ukrainian deaths—all because they can’t stand Trump succeeding where Biden failed.