From the Daily Caller News Foundation

By Wallace White

President Donald Trump’s apparent change in tune towards Ukraine shouldn’t be taken solely at face value, and may actually serve another purpose to further pressure all parties to come to the table, foreign policy experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Trump issued a Truth Social post Tuesday saying that Ukraine was “in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” and that he would continue sending NATO weapons to use in Ukraine. While many in the mainstream media characterized his statement as a notable “pivot,” experts told the DCNF that Trump may be giving Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin one last chance to end the war on peaceful terms, after which Trump may stand strongly behind Ukraine or wash his hands of the conflict altogether.

“I think it’s a tactical shift, but I don’t think his strategic purpose has changed,” George Beebe, director of grand strategy at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, told the DCNF. There are parties that insist that it must be a battlefield victory, and there are those in Russia that believe that it ought to be a battlefield victory. His answer to them is, ‘okay, you don’t want to compromise? Go ahead, pursue your battlefield victory,’ and that’s one that I don’t think any of these people have really grappled with the reality of what that really means for them.”

“If you read carefully, he talks about NATO as if it’s some separate entity to the United States,” Beebe told the DCNF. “I think the Europeans could not have failed to pick that up. And that by itself is, from Europe’s point of view, very concerning. And Trump basically said, ‘Okay, Europe, go ahead. Go to it. You defeat this paper tiger of Russia.’ But don’t expect … the United States to come running to defend you when the Russians shoot back at you.”

The White House has claimed that Trump’s statements towards Ukraine are part of a larger negotiating tactic. Trump has continued to pressure nations buying Russian oil to change their petroleum supply, most recently urging Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan during their Oval Office meeting Thursday.

Wilson Beaver, senior policy advisor for defense budgeting and NATO policy at the Heritage Foundation, told the DCNF that his insistence on pursuing these trade negotiations surrounding the Ukraine war is evidence that Trump is nowhere near done with attempting to broker peace.

“One thing I would point to that shows just how committed he is: the tariffs put on India,” Beaver told the DCNF. “India has been making a lot of money buying oil from the Russians, and we’ve nicely asked them to stop for the past three years, and they haven’t. President Trump was frustrated with that, and he acted to try to get the Indians to stop funding Russia’s war in Ukraine, and this has had some follow-on negative effects for the U.S.-India relationship.”

When asked a question Tuesday on whether or not the president still trusted Putin to come to the peace table, Trump told reporters to wait “a month from now.” Trump also said that he would back NATO allies if Russia decided to expand its war to the rest of Europe.

This month, Russia has violated violated the airspace of Poland and Estonia multiple times, prompting condemnation from Europe and increased readiness among NATO nations for any potential escalation with Russia. Whatever Trump’s tactics are, Beaver believes his course remains steady despite perceived rhetorical changes.

“He’s very committed to a peace deal, a cease fire for Ukraine,” Beaver told the DCNF. “I think it was always in the cards that different tactics might have to be used to reach that end state, but the goal is the same.”

From the Daily Caller News Foundation

By Alan Wilson

Charlie Kirk’s brutal political assassination was a wakeup call across America. The world watched as a bullet took his life, and then we watched, in equal horror, at the reprehensible rhetoric that followed his death.

Before Charlie Kirk was even pronounced dead, a liberal MSNBC pundit said the bullet was probably fired from one of Charlie’s “supporters” who may have “accidentally fired their gun in celebration.” Some professors at colleges and universities across the country, including my home state of South Carolina, cheered his death and tried to justify Charlie’s killing. Radical lunatics on the Left even called his memorial service a Nazi rally, ridiculed his grieving widow, and said his two young children are better off without him.

All of this hatred because Charlie Kirk simply wanted to debate ideas. His mission was to create dialogue and civil discourse on college campuses. He wanted to teach young people to vehemently disagree but still have thoughtful conversations – to argue one’s beliefs and think independently and critically.

An off-color joke made when someone was 19 is very different from someone making inflammatory remarks in real time that undermine the trust placed in their position, especially when it promotes, justifies, or even celebrates violence. And as a result when we confuse accountability with censorship or cancel culture, we empower dangerous voices and threaten the very safety of our communities. Let me be clear: celebrating or justifying cold-blooded murder is never acceptable and employers are justified for firing individuals that make these statements. In fact, it’s the only rational position for these employers to take.

Freedom of speech does not mean an absence of responsibility. Professors at Clemson University, or anyone else for that matter, shouldn’t be jailed for their reprehensible comments. But that doesn’t mean their behavior comes without consequences. Holding individuals accountable for their actions can serve to protect our society as a whole. You’re still entitled to your stupid opinion, but that doesn’t mean people will agree with it or that you should get a free pass.

I believe the First Amendment serves as the fundamental foundation of our Constitution by safeguarding speech from government control. Throughout my career as Attorney General I have worked to protect this fundamental, God-given right. But I’ve found that people don’t actually know what free speech means. For example, you can not go into a crowded building and yell “fire!” It means you can share your ideas without fear of being jailed. But it does not mean you can say whatever you want without responsibility. Actions do have consequences.

It’s up to us to demand accountability. To teach our young people accordingly and call balls and strikes when we see them. The recent abhorrent display of violence masqueraded as free expression must be dealt with seriously. Employers, especially educational institutions, should take immediate disciplinary measures against staff members who promote extremist violent beliefs. And if people protest that line of thinking, I’d ask why? Why do you think it’s okay for celebrating violence to go unpunished? Why does the Left accept forced pronoun policies but shudder at the thought of holding people accountable for cheering murder?

Our nation is at a turning point. We should ask ourselves what it will take to build a society where disagreements are debated with civility, where differences are not met with violence, and where our children inherit a country that values life, liberty, and community above all else. That is how we can honor Charlie Kirk’s life. That is how we make sure his work was not in vain.

Charlie often spoke of the power of the grassroots, the power of ordinary people rising up to make an extraordinary difference and the importance of faith. It is up to the rest of us to carry that vision forward. We cannot let this tragedy silence us or divide us. Instead, we must be unified in our determination to live boldly, to speak freely, and to stand together as Americans.

Let us honor Charlie Kirk’s legacy by living out the values he so fiercely defended, faith, courage, love of country, and the unwavering belief in the promise of America. Like Charlie Kirk, I believe America’s best days are yet to come.

Alan Wilson was elected South Carolina’s 51st Attorney General in 2010. His X handle is @AGAlanWilson