The Daily Populous Thursday June 12nd, 2025 night edition
Authored by newrepublic.com and submitted by thenewrepublic

The Trump administration is losing its ability to hide its pro-Russia affinities.

In a searing exchange with Senator Mitch McConnell Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed the mental gymnastics at play as administration officials take a soft approach on Russia amid its ongoing war on Ukraine.

“Number one, who’s the aggressor and who’s the victim in the conflict?” asked McConnell.

“Russia is the aggressor,” Hegseth said, quietly.

“Which side do you want to win?” McConnell said.

But the defense secretary couldn’t provide a simple answer for that.

“As we’ve said time and time again, this president is committed to peace in that conflict. Ultimately, peace serves our national interests, and we think the interest of both parties, even if that outcome will not be preferable to many in this room and many in our country,” Hegseth said.

“Which side is President Xi pulling for?” continued McConnell.

That question tripped up the former Fox News anchor even more. After providing a complicated answer in which he pointed fingers at the Biden administration’s policies, Hegseth eventually conceded that China and its leadership would prefer Russia to win in the Ukrainian conflict.

“One thing I’m sure we agree on is that we don’t want a headline at the end of this conflict that says ‘Russia Wins and America Loses,’” McConnell said. “And given the fact that all of our adversaries are communicating with each other, that’s extremely important if we’re going to continue to play the role in the world that the vast majority of members of Congress think we should still play. Particularly now that our adversaries are more significant than they have been since the Berlin Wall came down.”

PirateMean4420 on June 11st, 2025 at 18:36 UTC »

OMG, the cat is definitely out of the bag. Trump has a "go-easy" policy towards Putin. He wants a a bro-mance.

ranchoparksteve on June 11st, 2025 at 18:33 UTC »

So, Hegseth didn’t say who he wants to win. It would have been very easy to say Ukraine, so presumably he’s cheering for Russia.

thenewrepublic on June 11st, 2025 at 18:23 UTC »

> In a searing exchange with Senator Mitch McConnell Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed the mental gymnastics at play as administration officials take a soft approach on Russia amid its ongoing war on Ukraine.

> “Number one, who’s the aggressor and who’s the victim in the conflict?” asked McConnell.

> “Russia is the aggressor,” Hegseth said, quietly.

> “Which side do you want to win?” McConnell said.

> But the defense secretary couldn’t provide a simple answer for that.