Thu Jul 17 22:10:00 UTC 2025: Here’s a summary and a rewrite of the provided text as a news article:
**Summary:**
President Trump is now publicly criticizing Vladimir Putin and signaling increased support for Ukraine, a significant shift from his past stance of repeatedly vouching for and trusting the Russian leader. Trump is now attempting to rewrite history, suggesting he was never truly fooled by Putin, despite past statements indicating otherwise. This shift comes as secondary sanctions are delayed and after previous instances of Trump defending Putin, even over U.S. intelligence, and dismissing concerns about Putin’s trustworthiness. This pattern echoes Trump’s previous overly optimistic assessments of other adversarial leaders, like China’s Xi Jinping, only to later reverse course. While now acknowledging Putin’s deceptive behavior, Trump seemingly avoids directly admitting his own misjudgment, instead blaming previous US presidents for being fooled.
**News Article:**
**Trump Sharpens Tone on Putin, Claims He Was Never Fooled, Despite Past Endorsements**
**Washington D.C.** – In a marked shift, former President Donald Trump has adopted a critical stance toward Vladimir Putin, denouncing the Russian leader in stronger terms and signaling increased military aid to Ukraine. This pivot comes after years of Trump repeatedly vouching for Putin’s trustworthiness, a record he now attempts to rewrite.
“He’s fooled a lot of people,” Trump stated this week, naming several of his predecessors while claiming that he was never deceived. However, archives reveal a different story. As recently as February, Trump stated, “I trust him on this subject,” when asked about Putin’s desire for peace in Ukraine. He’s even dismissed concerns about Putin breaking agreements, saying, “I think he’ll keep his word.”
This recent change in rhetoric comes amid a delay in implementing secondary sanctions targeting countries buying Russian oil. Trump has also been known to defend Putin in the past, notably during the 2018 Helsinki summit where he cast doubt on Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. election, even siding with Putin over U.S. intelligence agencies.
This is not the first time Trump has offered strong endorsements of foreign adversaries only to reverse course. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, he praised China’s handling of the outbreak, later blaming China for its spread.
While Trump now acknowledges that Putin says “nice things” but fails to act accordingly, he avoids directly admitting any misjudgment on his part. Rather, he tacitly seems to be pointing the blame on others for being fooled. This shift in tone raises questions about the true nature of Trump’s relationship with Putin and whether this is a calculated maneuver to boost his political standing.
First Piper 