Trump's Penchant for Treason

September 2026

By now it is obvious that Trump 2.0 is pursuing policies that provide "aid and comfort" to a formidable foreign enemy. That enemy is Russia. But because Moscow is not actually waging war against the U.S., Trump's treasonous conduct doesn't qualify as a crime under Article III of the Constitution. So, while Trump's cooperation with Putin's hostile agenda is not legally treason, it is certainly treasonous in substance.

Contrary to Trump's perspective, Russia is a dangerous adversary, not a partner.

The record shows that, both materially and rhetorically, Trump has aided Vladimir Putin's agenda to defeat the West. Putin wants to restore the Russian empire, fracture the NATO alliance, and even regain control of (if not retake) the Baltics. The malice extends beyond Europe: Russia's technical assistance turned North Korea into a nuclear power, its military defended the Assad regime during Syrian civil war, and its hired mercenaries have propped-up African dictators and plundered resources.

The most glaring manifestation of Putin's vicious game plan is the takeover of Crimea in 2014 and the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The fact that the war in Ukraine is fortified by an "axis of autocrats" (Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea) underscores the gravity of the threat to the Western alliance and U.S. leadership.

Putin's ascent has extinguished the hope of peaceful relations in the post-Soviet era. In his articles and speeches he explains why America and NATO are regarded as the enemy:

"The collapse of the Soviet Union was a major geopolitical disaster of the century. [By expanding NATO membership], America has publicly designated Russia as their enemy. For our country, this is a matter of life and death. It is not only a very real threat to our interests, but to the very existence of our state and to its sovereignty. It is the red line ... They have crossed it."

So, alongside the war on Ukraine, Putin has attempted to fracture NATO by executing a program of hybrid warfare: cyberattacks, disinformation, assassination, incursions and sabotage. Wikipedia provides a thorough list of examples, including the bomb-equipped drone recently downed at the Leipzig airport.

Trump's Treasonous Machinations Explained.

The reason Trump's activities in the following account are treasonous relates to the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine has succeeded in fighting the larger Russian military to a standoff. The conflict has settled into a war of attrition. This means that whichever country has the resources to sustain the standoff longer will eventually "win." The smaller Ukraine cannot sustain the war effort without support of allies. As long as Putin is confident that Russia can endure the costs of war over the long run, he will not relent.

Therefore, any conduct by Trump that increases Putin's willingness and ability to stay the course, or diminishes Ukraine's capacity to do the same, is treasonous. All of the following are examples of such conduct.

Trump's implicit support for Russia's war on Ukraine has been disguised as a humanitarian initiative to broker a lasting peace between the two sides. A peace deal he once claimed could be secured in a day, has turned into a stalling game designed to buy time for air strikes to demoralize the Ukrainians into submission.

In late 2025, after consulting with Moscow (but not Zelensky), the administration proposed a 28-point framework for peace. John Bolton characterized it as follows:

"Trump has effectively surrendered to Putin before the negotiations have even begun... The positions that Defense Secretary Hegseth announced ... constitute terms of a settlement that could have been written in the Kremlin."

Those terms included lifting sanctions on Russia while requiring Ukraine to forego NATO membership, cede territory, and dilute its military capabilities. Exactly what Putin wanted.

Immediately after inauguration, Trump revealed his pro-Moscow alignment by publicly vilifying Zelensky on national television. In that Oval Office meeting, he and Vance scolded Zelensky for ingratitude and blamed the protracted war on Zelensky's selfish stubbornness in the face of a massively superior foe: "You don't have the cards." In short, they tried to cast the Ukrainians' highly effective resistance to Russian aggression as the obstacle to peace.

Then, to pressure Zelensky into caving to Russian demands, the administration discontinued the huge military aid packages passed under Biden, and threatened to withhold critical intelligence support. (Vance called this betrayal "one of the things I'm proudest").

Trump also withdrew support from Ukraine by dumping responsibility for its defense onto the Europeans. America transferred its leadership of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group to Germany and UK. Henceforth, any American weapons supplied to Ukraine would have to be purchased and paid for by the Europeans. This definitely interrupted and slowed the flow of aid to Ukraine, to the benefit of the Russian military. By August 2026, Ukraine lacked the Patriot mistles needed to defend against Russia's bombing campaign.

At the same time, Trump aided Putin's effort to weaken NATO's cohesion and capabilities.

Regarding capabilities, in June 2026 the Trump administration announced cut backs in the number of troops and military equipment earmarked for collective defense under Article 5. The cut backs affect aircraft carriers, refueling planes, and fighter jets. This retreat, along with the withdrawal of support for Ukraine, incentivized Putin to step-up the hybrid war on NATO and reject cease-fire negotiations with Ukraine.

The ability to deter Russian aggression depends on maintaining the perception that NATO solidarity is unwavering, especially fidelity to Article 5 (collective defense). That's why Trump's policy of engaging NATO in a way that casts doubt on America's allegiance is essentially treasonous.

For example, he has berated European allies for their inadequate spending on defense, their lax immigration policies that threatens to "erase" European heritage, and their antipathy toward right wing populism. Trump displayed his disdain for those faults by actively supporting Victor Orban, the Hungarian leader who vetoed NATO's plan for military aid to Ukraine. (J.D. Vance visited Hungary to campaign for Orban's reelection). Clearly, a treasonous gift to Putin.

On top of that, he discounted NATO's value for America's security, while threatening to take-over an ally, Denmark's Greenland:

"We don't need them...we do need [to own] Greenland... whether they like it or not."

Undermining Article 5.

NATO's Article 5 obligates all member states to assist a teammate under attack. Trump has signaled to both allies and enemies that his commitment to Article 5 is unreliable.

Trump's ceremonial embrace of Article 5 at the July 2026 NATO summit, has been contradicted by his public comments. Their message is that America's response to an attack on a NATO member is conditional: it depends on whether the victim's NATO dues are paid-up, whether its leader is sufficiently deferential, and most recently, whether that leader declined to assist his knee-jerk war against Iran.

When asked if the U.S. would unconditionally comply with Article 5, Trump said "Depends on your definition. There's numerous definitions..." When asked to clarify his definition, he didn't mention military force, but rather said he is "committed to saving lives."

Since "saving lives" was also used to justify his peace-plan approach to Russian aggression against Ukraine, his approach to an attack on a NATO member is likely to be the same: send Kushner and Witkoff to Moscow to broker a deal acceptable to Putin. Tell me that's not treasonous.