On the 2024 campaign trail, then-candidate Donald Trump repeatedly claimed he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine ‘on day one.’ Roughly 180 days into his second presidential term, the war has only escalated. What has changed is Trump’s attitude toward Russian President Vladimir Putin. This week, Trump announced a new deal to send U.S. weapons to Ukraine, after weeks of complaining about Putin’s increasingly destructive attacks. Ben Rhodes, former Deputy National Security Advisor to President Barack Obama and co-host of Pod Save the World, discusses the significance of Trump’s pivot. He also weighs in on the latest fault lines in the ongoing ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel, mass layoffs at the State Department, and looming cuts to foreign aid.

And in headlines: The House joined in on the Jeffrey Epstein discourse, the Supreme Court greenlights mass layoffs at the Department of Education, and former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz testifies at his Senate confirmation hearing to be US ambassador to the United Nations.

Show Notes:

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