Happy Thanksgiving. Steve Witkoff is a traitor…

There is no way to soften what we are witnessing from Donald Trump’s handpicked special envoy.

I am writing this because there is no way to soften what we are witnessing from Donald Trump’s handpicked special envoy. Steve Witkoff crossed a line that no American should ever cross. He did not simply flirt with the interests of a foreign adversary. He did not make a simple diplomatic mistake. He adhered to the enemies of the United States and gave them comfort. That is the definition of a traitor under our Constitution.

I do not throw that word around. Trump calls nearly everyone a traitor. He has used it on Mark Kelly, Elissa Slotkin, Jason Crow, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie and on anyone who briefly gets in his way. I use the word for people who earn it. I use it for people who help an adversary figure out how to manipulate an American president into giving them what they want. Steve Witkoff belongs in that category.

A leaked recording confirmed by Russian state media shows Witkoff on the phone with one of Vladimir Putin’s top foreign policy advisers. There was no denial and no clarification. The call lasted just over five minutes and revealed a U.S. official congratulating the Kremlin, praising them, thanking them and then walking them through the best strategy for influencing Donald Trump during any future negotiation over Ukraine.

This was not a peace deal. This was not a negotiation. It was a pro Russia wish list.

Witkoff directly asked the adviser for guidance on how Trump and Putin should speak. He coached him on the exact emotional tone to use. Congratulate Trump. Flatter Trump. Call him a man of peace. Pretend Russia wants stability. Witkoff even bragged that he told Trump that Russia has always wanted a peace deal, which is a ridiculous claim for a government that invaded Georgia, invaded Crimea and then invaded Ukraine proper.

This was not simple confusion. This was not inexperience. This was a U.S. official giving Russia active direction on how to influence a sitting president. Even Republicans are calling it out. Representative Don Bacon said Witkoff cannot be trusted with any role in Russia Ukraine negotiations. When someone like Don Bacon is raising alarms about a Trump insider, something is very wrong.

While this is happening, Russia is winning the long game. They spread disinformation through bot networks. They pumped MAGA propaganda into American feeds. They interfered in elections. They helped shape the climate that allowed Trump to claw his way back into power. And now one of Trump’s envoys has been caught giving the Kremlin a direct path to the American presidency.

This is what an actual traitor looks like. Not a political opponent. Not someone who gives a speech you disagree with. A traitor is someone who undermines the national interest on behalf of an authoritarian state that is actively trying to rewrite the global order.

Russia has a clear strategy. Invade a neighbor. Seize territory. Pause. Rebuild. Invade again. Repeat this process until large parts of Eastern Europe fall under the control of the Kremlin. If Ukraine falls, China will draw similar lessons and apply them to Taiwan. When authoritarian powers learn that they can take whatever they want because the United States is too distracted or too compromised to respond, the world becomes much more dangerous.

Witkoff does not understand any of this. Trump does not understand any of this either. Trump even defended him on Air Force One by claiming that Witkoff was just making sure both sides were satisfied. Trump ignored the obvious truth that only one side is getting what it wants and the other side is being set up to lose its sovereignty.

What should anger every American on this holiday is the fact that Witkoff’s behavior puts American service members at greater risk. A weakened United States gives Russia confidence to push harder. Every NATO soldier stationed in Poland, Romania and the Baltic region becomes a more attractive target. Every American deployed in Eastern Europe faces a more aggressive and more confident adversary. Meanwhile Trump is publicly signaling that he listens to guidance from a man who was caught coaching the Kremlin in plain sight.

This is how authoritarianism advances. Not always with tanks at the border but through concessions, confusion, propaganda and compromised officials who sell out the national interest while telling the public they are negotiating for peace.

The most frustrating part is how easy it is to see Trump being shaped by whoever speaks to him last. The transcript reads like a guide to influencing him. Witkoff flatters Russia. Russia flatters Trump. Trump absorbs whatever he hears most recently. That cycle is now shaping the foreign policy of the United States.

The stakes are enormous. Ukraine’s sovereignty is at risk. The stability of Europe is at risk. The safety of democratic nations everywhere is at risk.

On this Thanksgiving, I am grateful for everyone who still cares about the truth and who still believes in defending this country from those who betray it. And I am grateful for every supporter who continues to fight for honesty and reality in a very dishonest time.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates. Everyone except for Steve Witkoff.

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