As is his wont, Trump threatened the Russians with tariffs and sanctions if they refuse to come to the bargaining table. Will Putin be impressed?
Hardly. The only economic measures that Trump could apply that haven’t been tried yet would raise the price of gasoline for his voters. Is that really plausible?
The only leverage we have over Putin is a threat to escalate the war. If Trump threatens that, given his record on Ukraine, Putin won’t take him seriously. I wouldn’t, either.