How the Trump, Zelensky meeting went off the rails

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

72% : When asked by the press if the meeting was going to be good, Trump gave thumbs up before the two leaders went inside the White House.
69% : Trump welcomed Zelensky to the Oval Office cordially enough, praising the bravery of Ukrainian soldiers and insisting he wanted to see peace.
63% : With us, you start having cards," Trump said, raising his voice.
58% : The French president physically embraced Trump as they sat side by side in the Oval Office, an image that hearkened to their intense handshakes of Trump's first term.
56% : French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer had appealed to Trump this week by praising him as a negotiator, while insisting any peace deal required assurances that would prevent future Russian aggression.
52% : Zelensky arrived at the White House on Friday with the hopes of signing a critical minerals deal with the U.S. and securing assurances from Trump as he seeks to broker peace between Kyiv and Moscow.
48% : But both men tried to impress upon Trump the fact that Europe had contributed plenty to aid Ukraine, as well as the importance of a lasting peace agreement.
46% : On the day of the meeting, Trump greeted Zelensky at the White House by commenting on his clothing while the Ukrainian president has always worn a black long sleeve shirt since his country has been at war.
45% : Trump officials sought to get the Ukrainian leader to sign onto a critical minerals deal on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, which Zelensky declined to do.
45% : "I've never been more proud of Trump for showing the American people and the world, you don't trifle with this man.
44% : Don't tell us what we're going to feel," Trump said.
44% : But Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz ultimately told them they had to leave the White House grounds, which Trump had ordered, and they suggested Zelensky return when he's ready for peace.
43% : Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump and Vance were "standing up for the American people.
40% : The moment the meeting went from cordial to off the rails occurred when Vance said Trump was engaging in diplomacy and Zelensky questioned "what kind of diplomacy, JD, are you speaking about?" noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin has broken ceasefires and killed Ukrainians.
39% : " The rift between Trump and Zelensky has been steadily brewing for some time.
39% : Once they were inside the Oval, Trump remarked, "I do like your clothing" but Zelensky later seemed frustrated when a pro-Trump reporter in the room questioned Zelensky on why he doesn't wear a suit and said "a lot of Americans" have an issue with him not doing so. Friday's flare-up elicited a gleeful response from Moscow.
38% : You have a damn good chance of coming out OK because of us," Trump said.
38% : Zelensky responded to those claims by saying Trump lived in a "disinformation space" and was echoing Russian talking points.
37% : " When Zelensky then tried to suggest that the U.S. had not yet felt the full ramifications from the war, he set off Trump.
36% : A White House official told The Hill that after the spat, Trump and Zelensky went into separate rooms and the Ukrainians wanted the talks to continue, asking to reset.
36% : Trump felt disrespected by Zelensky's demeanor and comments during the meeting, telling aides that he was shrugging and rolling his eyes, the official said.
24% : While campaigning for president last year, Trump repeatedly expressed skepticism about continued U.S. support for Ukraine, which had become the foundation of the Biden administration's foreign policy.
22% : Trump got increasingly personal in recent weeks, calling Zelensky a "dictator without elections" and claiming Ukraine was to blame for the start of the war.
20% : But negotiations ended shortly after they started, with Trump calling Zelensky "disrespectful" and saying he was "not ready for peace.
18% : Zelensky began saying but Trump cut him off.
18% : Zelensky was just elected president when Trump called him in July 2019 about information on former President Biden's son, Hunter Biden, and his business dealings in Ukraine, which led to the accusations that he solicited foreign interference in the 2020 race.
17% : " Rubio, who sat expressionless on and sunken into a couch in the Oval Office as the meeting devolved into chaos, posted on X that Trump was "standing up for America in a way that no President has ever had the courage to do before.
15% : Trump accused Zelensky of being rude to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a recent trip to Kyiv.
11% : Zelensky was caught in the middle of Trump's first impeachment proceedings in 2019, when Democrats accused Trump of withholding lethal aid for Ukraine while he pressed Zelensky to investigate the Biden family.

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