US divided over row at White House

The heated exchange between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Donald Trump, as well as Vice-President JD Vance, has all the social media platforms abuzz.

Tens of thousands of comments have been made under a single thread devoted to the discussion.

US citizens are divided on the issue.

"I am horrified watching it unfold and I feel so ashamed for my country," said one.

"I am proud of the President and Vice-President for standing up for the United States," said another.

Alisa Lei, a small business owner in Houston, said she tried to comprehend the situation.

"I watched the entire broadcast leading up to Trump's tantrum. Before the blowup, Trump wanted President Zelensky to sign another cease-fire agreement, Zelensky said Putin has broken the ceasefire agreements 25 times and another cease-fire won't matter," she told China Daily.

"Then Trump was set off when Zelensky said that if Ukraine is defeated, even the USA would feel the impact. This shows that Trump knows nothing about how diplomacy works," Lei continued.

"Now the conservatives are attacking Zelensky for not taking this deal. Who in the world would take this deal? That is not a deal but extortion on the part of Trump. Any decent American should feel ashamed by his act. I know I do," Lei said.

But many other people were feeling proud.

"I'm glad we elected Trump and Vance. We got men in office who care deeply for our country and our people. It's about time we had some backbone in the White House," one Facebook user commented.

"America will not be taken advantage of with President Trump in office," another said.

Elon Musk reposted a post by Cynical Publius on his own platform X with a "Yes" on Saturday.

The post reads: "Ukraine cannot win this war. What Zelensky wants is for the US and/or NATO to literally start fighting the Russians, and that's not going to happen because nobody wants nuclear Armageddon and the end of humanity (except possibly Zelensky)."

"So what is the ONLY option? Answer: mark the boundaries where they are right now and stop fighting," the post continued. "THERE IS NO OTHER OPTION."

US Democratic and Republican politicians also expressed opposing views.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, posted on X: "Thanks to President Trump — the days of America being taken advantage of and disrespected are OVER."

Senator Lindsey Graham said the shouting match could end US support for Zelensky, calling the meeting a "complete, utter disaster".

"Somebody asked me, am I embarrassed about Trump. I have never been more proud of the president. I was very proud of JD Vance standing up for our country."

Graham said he has visited Ukraine eight or nine times since the conflict started. He once expressed strong support for Zelensky and encouraged former president Joe Biden to do more to help Ukraine in 2023.

Dismay voiced

"We want to be helpful. What I saw in the Oval Office was disrespectful, and I don't know if we can ever do business with Zelensky again," he said. "The way he handled the meeting, the way he confronted the president, was just over the top."

Democrats mostly expressed dismay over the meeting.

"What we saw in the Oval Office today was beyond disgraceful," Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland posted on X. "Trump and Vance berating Zelensky — putting on a show of lies and misinformation that would make Putin blush — is an embarrassment for America and a betrayal of our allies. They're popping champagne in the Kremlin."

Al Green, a US representative from Texas, held a news conference Friday addressing the issue. He filed an impeachment article against Trump earlier this year.

"I was very disappointed to see earlier today what I consider a shameful display of bully diplomacy," Green said. "This is unbelievable behavior emanating from the highest office of the land, and this behavior is being emulated by others who hold positions under the president."

Green said people will see more of that type of behavior at state and local government levels.

Zack, a Houston computer professional in his mid-20s who declined to provide his last name, said Friday's events were "very concerning".

"It's not apparent what the executive office wants to signal by turning a diplomatic talk into a reality TV show. It's not good for the US because the whole exchange indicated that Trump is mouthing Russia's talking points when it comes (to) the war," Zack said.

"The US executive office is operating under the influence of foreign propaganda, that's very concerning. He's being played like a fiddle by people who have a different interest than ours."

Zack said that judging from the White House live broadcast, "Trump appeared to be hyper-focused on having optics on his ending the war, being in control and in a dominating position."

mayzhou@chinadailyusa.com