Letters from an American August 8, 2025
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Aug 9, 2025 A deep dive into the shifting geopolitical landscape as the U.S. contemplates a meeting with Putin amidst the Ukraine crisis raises urgent questions about foreign policy and international agreements. The podcast also revisits the controversial narrative surrounding Russian interference in the 2016 election, unveiling how political allies have spun it into a Democratic conspiracy. With Tulsi Gabbard's revelation of declassified reports, the implications for U.S.-Russia relations come into sharp focus.
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Welcoming Putin Normalizes Aggression
- Heather Cox Richardson warns that Trump's invitation lets Putin touch down on U.S. soil despite his invasion of Ukraine.
- The gesture undermines post–World War II norms that discourage conquest by force.
Budapest Memorandum’s Broken Promise
- Heather Cox Richardson explains Ukraine relinquished its nuclear arsenal after receiving security assurances from the U.S., U.K., and Russia in 1994.
- Russia violated those assurances by invading Ukraine in 2014 and again in 2022.
Summit Could Endorse Land Seizure
- Heather Cox Richardson reports Bloomberg found officials planning a deal that would force Ukraine to cede occupied land and Crimea to Russia.
- Such a deal would bless the principle that territories can be seized by force and invite further aggression.