Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Trump Names His Price

American support for Ukraine has a price tag: $500B worth of mineral riches, said U.S. President Donald Trump. In the second part of an interview with Fox News that aired late Monday, the Republican said the U.S. should get a slice of Ukraine’s vast natural resources as compensation for the hundreds of billions it has spent on helping Kyiv resist Russia's full-scale invasion. “I told them [Ukraine] that I want the equivalent like $500B worth of rare earth. And they've essentially agreed to do that so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said.

Read the rest here.

I love my country, though there are a few aspects of America's distant past that do not exactly fill me with pride. I expect that is broadly true everywhere. And of course, we all have the routine differences in political matters. But until quite recently, and conceding the exception of legalized abortion on demand, I have never felt outright shame for my country for anything it has done in my lifetime. This is a new, and altogether unwelcome sensation. 

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