Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman accused President Donald Trump on Sunday of acting against Ukraine’s interests and in favor of Russia. The post came two days after he signed an executive order waiving sweeping new sanctions and tariffs on Moscow, and she called on voters to use the midterm elections to reverse course. The post is the latest blast from a Republican-turned-Trump critic who has spent years warning against softness toward the Kremlin.
The Post
Whitman, a former Environmental Protection Agency administrator, published the statement on X at 9:28 PM on Sunday, October 18, 2026. It reads in full:
“What Trump is doing to Ukraine in favor of communist Russia is shameful & it will not bring down gas prices. Lifting sanctions on Russia, which is trying to hurt the US, should offend all Americans. The midterm elections are vital – we need to elect people who will stop this now.”
The post makes three claims: that Trump’s approach favors Moscow over Kyiv, that it will not lower fuel prices, and that voters have the power to stop it in November. Each ties directly to the events of the past ten days.
The Diesel Deal That Started It
The sequence began on October 9, when Trump announced a deal allowing Russia to resume diesel exports. He said Moscow would immediately supply more than 300,000 metric tons, roughly 2.25 million barrels, to U.S. and global markets, with 500,000 tons promised in November and 1 million tons afterward. The administration temporarily lifted U.S. sanctions on Russian fuel to make the shipments possible.
Trump framed the deal as a response to soaring fuel costs. “Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority,” he said in a social media post about the agreement. Diesel averaged $6.18 a gallon as of October 12, up from $3.48 at the start of the year, with prices pushed higher by the war with Iran and by Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries.
The Executive Order
On Friday, October 16, Trump signed an order titled “Implementing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026,” two days before the law’s penalties were due to take effect. The order cites Section 115 of the act, which lets the president waive sanctions, restrictions, and duties if he certifies to Congress that doing so is in the national interest. “I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver at this time is in the national interests of the United States,” the order states.
The waiver covers a 500 percent duty on goods from the Russian Federation and 100 percent duties on the five largest buyers of Russian oil and gas and the five top facilitators of Russian sanctions evasion. It also covers a series of sanctions provisions in the act. Sanctions imposed under earlier executive orders remain in place. The waivers stay in effect until the president or the Secretary of State determines further action is appropriate.
How the Sanctions Law Came to Be
The act is named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican who championed Russia sanctions for years. He announced a deal with the White House on the legislation on July 10 and died suddenly the next day. The Senate passed a revised version 86–11 on August 7, and the House followed 262–159 on September 16. Trump signed it into law on September 18.
The law includes a presidential waiver authority, which Trump used. A dozen senators, including Republicans Mitch McConnell, Thom Tillis, Susan Collins, and John Cornyn, had urged him days earlier to rescind the diesel deal and implement the sanctions.
Reaction From Kyiv and Moscow
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the diesel move “a weak decision of strong partners.” After the waiver, he predicted more relief for Moscow, posting on X: “Sanctions relief will continue.” Trump, meanwhile, said he would “suggest” Ukraine get a new leader as the two sparred over the deal, and had been angered by Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries.
In Moscow, Kirill Dmitriev, President Vladimir Putin’s economic envoy, called the suspension of Graham Act provisions “an important and truly historic moment.” French President Emmanuel Macron said the diesel arrangement “sends a negative message” and would have no effect on global prices.
Will It Lower Prices?
Whitman’s claim that the deal will not bring down gas prices matches the assessment of many analysts. They note that the initial 300,000 tons is a small volume against global demand and that diesel prices are driven mainly by constrained supply. Together, the Gulf and Russia supplied nearly 45 percent of seaborne diesel trade in February. Experts also warn that Russia may not be able to deliver the promised volumes given its diminished refining capacity, and that the revenue could help fund its war effort. EU economy chief Valdis Dombrovskis said the deal is unlikely to significantly affect global prices.
A Long Record of Warning About Russia
Whitman has criticized Trump’s posture toward Moscow for years. After the July 2018 Helsinki press conference with Putin, she wrote on Twitter that Trump “should be ashamed” and urged him to “please step down.” Days later, in a Los Angeles Times op-ed, she called his behavior “indefensible,” said his “America First” platform should be renamed “Russia First,” and urged Republicans to pursue tougher sanctions on Russia.
In 2025, ahead of Trump’s meeting with Putin in Alaska, she wrote in an opinion column that Putin “will not and cannot negotiate in good faith.” She argued Trump could force an end to the fighting by arming Ukraine so it could push back Russia’s territorial advances.
Who Whitman Is
Whitman served as New Jersey’s governor from 1994 to 2001 and then as EPA administrator under President George W. Bush. She left the Republican Party in 2022 to co-found the centrist Forward Party with Andrew Yang. In 2024, she was among 24 Republican elected officials who endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, saying Trump was “unfit to lead our nation.”
The Midterm Stakes
Whitman’s call to “elect people who will stop this now” lands as fuel prices have become a political liability for Republicans, with farmers, a historically Republican constituency, hit hard by diesel costs. Midterm elections are scheduled for November 3.
On the prediction market Polymarket, the odds of Democrats winning the House stand at 91 percent, with Republicans at 10 percent. Democrats need only a modest net gain of seats to take control, and the market’s own summary points to low presidential approval and voter dissatisfaction with the economy.