I’ve still not seen the video, and I see no reason to. But it’s worth noting that when the media unite around how shitty something is, it might be shitty.

  • OK, I’ve now seen the video. And what the actual fuck? “You don’t have the cards” coming from a guy who bankrupts casinos is … I mean, I don’t have words. This was an utter disgrace and not any show of power. It was a dressing-down of someone trying to protect his country.

    This is a fucking embarrassment. This is a man of dim intellect trying to tell a foreign head of state why he should just cede authority to a larger power without considering that maybe Ukraine doesn’t want to be part of a reconstituted Soviet Union.

    • It’s a mob shakedown by an incompetent, myopic, known to be liar and his minion. Repeating yourself, raising your voice, and latching onto half-ideas to push your brand – “intimidating” and bluffing to force the deal only works if you had any respect in the first place.

      Also, it feels like Vance’s PR team told him he’s being overshadowed by Trump in the media so he should make a big show to boost his ratings. Absolute clowns.

  • I can’t help but point out - during the previous Trump term, he appointed family to positions and they were everywhere in the public eye. Now it’s very rare to see any of them. I wonder if they’re just as tired of his bs as everyone else now as he goes deeper into the rabbit hole.

    I also wonder how Vance’s wife is in all of this. I only saw her once during inauguration at the church service, but largely didn’t pay attention to any of the transition or the people involved. If she’s an actual caring human, I wonder how much abuse she encounters. Or maybe she’s as messed up as the rest of em…

  • This seems to be an interesting take on the interaction:

    This was an AMBUSH at The White House

    The mere presence of Vance, the TASS reporter who got expelled at the last moment, the stupid question about not wearing a suit, the comments about discussing stuff “behind closed doors” instead of “in front of the cameras”… they all make the interpretation plausible. It gets compounded by the latest draft of the agreement being nothing like what Trump had been screaming about.

    IMHO, it looks like Trump wanted to reenact his interpretation of the negotiation process in front of the cameras to make himself look great, but Zelensky didn’t want to take part in the charade.