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Days ago, Trump had that bizarre comment about how he was not doing so well, and wanted to get to heaven, so that was why he wanted to end the war in Ukraine.
The rumors which are now swirling about Trump's health issues, and how MAGA was fixating on clear signs of Biden's health during last year's campaign while dismissing very similar signs about Trump's decline in health, that comment by Trump did nothing to dissuade those rumors.
However, that is an issue for another day. Today, I wanted to focus specifically on his approach to Ukraine and ending the war there. Because while some MAGA cult members are doing their typical mental gymnastics to stretch the truth about how Trump repeatedly claimed that he would end the war within 24 hours and claiming that he was not being literal, the fact that he repeated it over and over again - 53 times! - suggests otherwise. And since he was the one who claimed it so often, and nobody forced him to make such an absurd claim, we really should scrutinize it and hold him accountable for yet again failing to uphold one of his key campaign promises.
You might think that people would grow wise to Donald Trump's scams after he failed to deliver on his promises during his first term in office. After all, he didn't build that wall, and most certainly could not make Mexico pay for it. He did not build a national healthcare system that would be affordable and cover everyone. He did not lock up Crooked Hillary. He did not go any part of the way towards paying off the national debt in eight years. In fact, he instead increased it by over 25%. Also, the rest of the world did not hold the United States with increased respect. There were giant balloons of a crying baby Trump which flew every time Trump visited Britain. There were parade floats of a buffoonish Donald Trump in Germany. He humiliated himself by praising the healthcare system of a non-existent country before assembled leaders of African nations. He outraged much of the world by dismissing dozens of countries as "shithole nations." And he was literally laughed it while making a speech before the United Nations, with the whole world watching. Plus, he showed the entire world that he had a difficult time condemning even outright Nazis. Then, of course, that first term ended with the whole Big Lie claim that he was cheated in the 2020 election, and the attempted coup on January 6th.
All of that just in that first term.
Yet, he got a second term in office after the 2024 election. Did he have any better luck delivering on promises this time around so far?
Well, no. He did not quickly lower the price of gas or groceries, as promised. Once again, he increased the national debt by $3 trillion just in the first six months. He went back on his word and is refusing to release the Epstein Files.
And the other big lie: he never could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours. In fact, he has not even come close to ending it at all, even though he has now been in office for over seven months. His meeting with Putin a little over a week ago was widely condemned and seen as disastrous even by many of his political allies.
Not a surprise, then, that his approval ratings have tanked. The latest batch of numbers shows that he is now in the higher 30's in terms of overall approval among Americans. Hardly dream numbers.
So not exactly a glowing performance so far.
Predictably, MAGA cult members are working overtime, trying to find the loopholes or other justifications for why things did not work out quite the way Trump had boldly predicted. They seem to be falling in line with the notion that Trump was not being literal. That this was largely said in jest, and that we should not hold his feet to the fire on this particular matter.
As it turns out, Trump made this claim more than 50 times during the presidential campaign last year. That would indicate that not only was it a major theme for his presidential platform, but that he also meant it. So no, it wasn't in jest, as he now claims. Quite conveniently, I might add.
Again, we used to have standards in this country. When an elected official promised something, they used to be held accountable. I still remember how George H.W. Bush's "read my lips, no new taxes" promise, which he had to renege on later on, seemed largely responsible for costing him the 1992 election. Politicians have always been known to lie, or to at least manipulate. But it never seemed to be as extreme as now. I cannot imagine any politician getting away with nearly as many broken promises and outright lies as Donald Trump has now managed to get away with. They never hold him accountable for promises which he fails to deliver on, and so he continues to receive loyal support from MAGA cult members no matter what.
It should not be this way. And when we see it, we need to call it out. Call a spade a spade, if you will.
Indeed, Trump promised not only to end the war in Ukraine, but to do it in 24 hours. That was supposed to be part of his overall plan, as the master dealmaker of all time, if you believe his own billing of himself. Some of us are skeptical of these lofty achievements which he never fails to credit himself for. But since he has now legally been elected to the Oval Office twice, it should not be seen as just some passing statement, or make excuses that he didn't really mean it literally. After all, wasn't part of the justification for his supporters voting for Trump based on this notion that he means what he says, and follows up with action?
The war did not end. No peace deal was made. Not even a ceasefire. And he has now met with leaders on both sides.
Clearly, this was yet another Trump failure. And it's time to hold him accountable for still one more broken promise.
Below is the article which I used in writing this particular blog entry, and which documents just how often - and how serious - Trump was when he made that promise multiple times about quickly ending the war in Ukraine:
Fact check: It wasn’t ‘in jest.’ Here are 53 times Trump said he’d end Ukraine war within 24 hours or before taking office Daniel Dale By Daniel Dale, CNN 16 min read Published 5:07 PM EDT, Fri April 25, 2025:
https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/25/politics/fact-check-trump-ukraine-war?fbclid=IwY2xjawLxl6VleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHno-u8Nfdo6BtVPPpFXnkmKCFXvHRfdq1VUHzsrYjU7YNiqH1NQJ5tDHBiGO_aem_U8nVzn30HpPtmsqvkhl0ZA
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