Three sources close to President Donald Trump said that he has convinced himself that there is an evil actor meddling in the 2026 election to ensure Republicans lose.
The Atlantic's Jonathan Lemire and Simon Shuster reported late Tuesday that the president is operating under his own delusion that Ukraine is responsible for the effort to overthrow the midterms.
Ukraine understands that there are three major world events that could determine its future. One is the U.S. election. Another is the upcoming mid-November meeting in southern China, "where Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to meet with Trump and Chinese President Xi," the report said.
Finally, the G20 summit at Trump's country club in Miami, Florida is scheduled for mid-December. The authors noted that Trump had been dreaming about a peace agreement between Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russia's Vladimir Putin, advisors told them. It isn't likely to happen.
The report cited one Ukrainian official, who said, “It looks like this is all happening without us."
While talks are ongoing, Trump's recent decision to announce a ceasefire without it being approved by either Russia and Ukraine prompted anger from the latter as they paused and Russia continued to bomb the country's civilians. At that point, Zelenskyy said, "We're done," according to NBC News. The report implied that Ukraine has been holding back on bombing Russia's oil infrastructure. Trump has desperately hoped to protect the refineries in Russia to keep the costs of fuel low ahead of the 2026 elections. It appears Ukraine believes continuing is in its own best military interest.
"Some in Trump’s orbit have suggested that the United States go further and stop sharing intelligence with Ukraine" the report said. "Trump’s deference to Putin has been a theme for a decade, yet this new round of kowtowing has handed Republicans another obstacle ahead of the elections."
The reference is to Trump's decision to deliver $4 billion to Russia for a small sliver of diesel in what is expected to be a failed effort to reduce fuel costs in the U.S. The price of oil is determined on a global scale. The main issue is supply disruptions from the Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump "blames those strikes for the rise in energy prices while ignoring the real culprit, Iran’s ability to defy the United States and close the Strait of Hormuz. He’s convinced himself, three people close to him have told us, that Ukraine’s attacks on the refineries are, in part, meant to undermine Republicans’ chances next month — and, by extension, Trump," the report said.
Trump hasn't responded to the attacks on Ukraine's civilian population and their electrical grid. In fact, Trump commented that Russia hasn't "been doing much." Zelenskyy responded with photos of dead children in a park.
The Atlantic reporters recalled the 2024 campaign when Trump promised he could end the war within his first 24 hours in office. He later added that he could probably solve it before he was sworn in.
Putin appears to have convinced Trump to hold a private meeting with Xi on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in China to discuss, among other things, Ukraine. Trump told reporters on Monday that he was open to it.
"It is no surprise that Trump is drawn to the idea," the report said. "His deference toward Putin is rivaled only by his regard for Xi, whom he hosted in lavish fashion at the White House last month. He has previously been intrigued by the idea of the three powers — China, Russia, the United States — dividing the globe into spheres of influence, although Moscow these days hardly wields the international clout of Washington or Beijing."
In the background, activists have been sharing memes claiming that after Russian data centers were bombed, pro-conservative, pro-Republican and far-right promotion significantly dropped. They've noted that since then, Republicans allege that Ukraine is meddling in the election, which activists think is an admission that they knew Russia was helping them.
