Veteran Fox News host Brit Hume, 81, expressed confusion over President Donald Trump’s recent comments about Russian President Vladimir Putin, admitting he was “completely baffled” by the situation.
Hume, the network’s Chief Political Analyst, admitted he couldn’t understand Trump’s reaction to Putin’s latest airstrikes in Ukraine, which resulted in the deaths of at least a dozen people in Kyiv over the weekend. Trump, typically supportive of Putin, seemed visibly shocked and angry by the news, saying, “I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin.”
Hume reflected on Trump’s complex view of Putin, explaining that the president seemed to believe that he and Putin could forge a friendly partnership. “I think he thought that he and Putin could be friends, partners, and could make deals together,” Hume said, adding that Trump’s conception of the Russian leader had always been a bit “odd.”
However, Hume emphasized that Putin’s behavior has been consistent throughout his leadership. “This is the way Putin has always been. He’s always been a particularly brutal dictator, willing to take any measures necessary to advance his interests,” he said.
Trump’s comments marked a sharp shift from his usual stance. In his statement, he called Putin’s actions “absolutely crazy” and expressed his dissatisfaction with the violence. “He is needlessly killing a lot of people, and I’m not just talking about soldiers,” Trump posted on Truth Social. He continued to criticize the missile and drone strikes on Ukrainian cities, labeling them as senseless.
The Kremlin quickly responded to Trump’s remarks, with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov attributing the comments to “emotional overload” and reaffirming gratitude for Trump’s involvement in facilitating negotiations between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
While Trump had previously claimed he could end the war in Ukraine “in a single day,” his comments now signal a growing frustration with Putin’s escalating actions.
