Mercedes Schlapp brushed aside media criticism aimed at the Trump administration for negotiating with Russia, telling Newsmax on Friday that President Donald Trump's team needs to know what the terms are on both sides to end the war in Ukraine.
Schlapp, former White House director of strategic communications in Trump's first term in office, interviewed national security adviser Mike Waltz at the Conservative Political Action Conference earlier Friday and talked about the "tough negotiations" that have to happen.
"Well, we talked about how President Trump has expressed frustration with [Ukrainian] President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy, how he basically backtracked on the raw mineral deal," Schlapp said on "Finnerty."
"So I think for Mike Waltz, it was very important to talk about the fact — look, he's got to go negotiate. The U.S. team has to negotiate with Russia. It's a no-brainer."
"And you gotta figure out what the terms are on the Russian side. Then you gotta go to Zelenskyy, and there has to be tough negotiations. This war has to end," she added.
"The American taxpayer should not be responsible for funding this endless war. And for President Trump, it is his focus to ensure that we have peace in that region and, secondly, that we stop the killings of Ukrainians, unnecessary killings of thousands of Ukrainian men that are fighting," Schlapp said.
"So this is the goal of President Trump, which is saying we're getting to a solution. And, yes, we're going to have tough negotiations on both sides. But you gotta start those negotiations separately with each country."
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Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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