Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican and retired Air Force brigadier general who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, accused President Donald Trump on Sunday of being manipulated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He wrote that Trump “doesn’t know who is at fault in this war” and predicted the episode “will go down as a very embarrassing chapter in U.S. history.” The post came eleven minutes after Trump used Truth Social to defend his decision to waive sweeping new Russia sanctions, rebuke Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and play down Moscow’s role in helping Iran.
What Bacon Wrote
Bacon posted his response to X on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 3:47 p.m., framing it as a “translation” of the president’s message. The post read in full:
“Translation: The President shows he’s being duped by Putin and doesn’t know who is at fault in this war. He denies what other members of his own Administration are saying about Russian aid to Iran. This will go down as a very embarrassing chapter in U.S. history.”
What Trump Wrote
Trump’s post appeared on Truth Social at 3:36 p.m. the same day and read in full:
“My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table. Great progress is being made, and that includes current hostage negotiations! Signing that document at this time will do that, and I can sign it later, or any time that I want! Perhaps more importantly, Russia is doing very little, if anything, to help the Islamic Republic of Iran, compared to what they could be doing, and I want to keep it that way, and will, unless stupid people get in the way. Lastly, Zelenskyy is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States. Farmers, ranchers, and businesses of all kinds are suffering greatly from this, but Russia is, nevertheless, sending, at a low price, millions of barrels of diesel to the World. Zelenskyy doesn’t care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him, and that Crooked Joe Biden gave him in the past, he doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did. He could have made a better deal two years ago than he can now. His country is in shambles, a large portion of his land is lost, his oceans and seas are gone, and his male population is low, wounded, and/or dead. I WANT THIS WAR END! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP”
The post did not say which document Trump was referring to when he wrote that signing it “at this time” would drive Russia from the table. It followed an executive order he signed two days earlier suspending new sanctions on Moscow.
The Sanctions Waiver
On Friday, October 16, Trump signed an executive order waiving the application of sanctions, restrictions and duties in the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. He told Congress in a certification that the waiver “is in the national interests of the United States.” Congress passed the law in September with large bipartisan majorities, and Trump signed it a month ago. It is named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican and longtime Ukraine supporter who died unexpectedly in July. The measures would have imposed tariffs of up to 100% on goods from the five largest buyers of Russian crude oil and gas and targeted Russian officials, banks and the tankers that carry Russian energy. Existing sanctions remain in place. A White House spokesperson said enforcing the new provisions now would impede U.S. efforts to negotiate a lasting peace.
The waiver drew condemnation from both parties. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who co-drafted the bill, said Trump was turning his back on the majority of Americans, their representatives in both chambers of Congress, and European allies. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, called the move a mistake. Zelenskyy urged supporters to defend the sanctions and said limiting Ukraine’s ability to retaliate against Russian attacks would not bring peace. Trump, for his part, called the decision a “very good decision” and said he made the right choice.
The Russian Diesel Deal
The waiver came a week after Trump announced a diesel agreement with Putin following a phone call on October 9. Trump said Russia would supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel immediately, 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons after that, with another 3 million tons to follow depending on the condition of Russia’s refineries, for a total of about 4.8 million tons. Within minutes, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License 135, which authorizes transactions involving Russian-origin diesel, including imports into the United States, through April 7, 2027. The license does not authorize debits to accounts of Russia’s central bank, National Wealth Fund or Ministry of Finance held at U.S. financial institutions.
The administration says the move is aimed at easing fuel costs. Diesel prices have climbed nearly 70% since the war with Iran began in February, and the midterm elections are on November 3. Energy Secretary Chris Wright defended the waiver as a “carrot” meant to encourage Russia to reduce fighting in Ukraine, noting that Russia currently exports no diesel because of its own export ban. Zelenskyy called the deal “a gift” to Putin. French President Emmanuel Macron said it “sends a negative message” and would not meaningfully affect global prices, and the European Union’s economy chief said the same.
Russia, Iran and the Administration’s Own Assessments
Bacon’s second sentence concerns Trump’s claim about Russia and Iran. In a Truth Social post last Monday, Trump wrote that if Russia and China are helping Iran, “it’s at a very low level, but I don’t believe they are at all,” adding that they have “too much to lose” and that Washington “would know about it, and know about it very fast.” His Sunday post repeated the theme, saying Russia is doing “very little, if anything” to help Tehran.
Other administration officials have described the picture differently. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators in July there was “definitely adversary alignment” and that Russia and China were “at different levels, enabling some of the things Iran is doing.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in March that nothing Russia is doing for Iran impedes or affects the effectiveness of U.S. operations. The European Union’s top diplomat has said Russia is providing Iran intelligence to target Americans. Moscow has denied supplying Iran with intelligence on U.S. military targets.
A Long Record on Russia and Ukraine
Bacon’s criticism fits a record that stretches back to the 2022 invasion. In a statement published on his official House website, he called Russian aggression “despicable” and said the free world condemns Russia and its dictator. He also called Putin a “thug” and said Russia was a pariah state that must be cut off.
In May 2025, after large Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, Bacon wrote that peace talks were “having zero effect on Putin” and that the United States and its allies must “arm Ukraine to the teeth, sanction Russia to the max, & confiscate” about $300 billion in overseas Russian assets. In a later interview, as another Trump ceasefire deadline passed without new sanctions, he said “it is clear Putin doesn’t want peace unless he can dominate Ukraine.” Last year he responded to Trump’s description of the conflict as “Biden’s and Zelenskyy’s war” by calling it “morally blind and factually wrong” and saying Trump would be “judged in the history books.” He has also teamed with Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick on a discharge petition to force a House vote on a Russia sanctions bill.
Bacon’s Escalating Criticism This Month
After the diesel deal was announced, Bacon declared that Trump’s “policies towards Russia and Ukraine are failures,” adding that “propping up Putin’s war economy is morally wrong as he uses that money to bomb cities.” He became the only Republican to cosponsor a Democratic-led bill, the Prohibit Corrupt Russia Oil Deals Act, that would revoke Russian energy licenses, and he joined four other Republicans in a bipartisan letter urging Trump to reverse course. After the sanctions waiver, he said Trump “is prolonging the war, not ending it.”
Earlier in the week, after Trump answered a question about Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy sites by saying “Ukraine hit many sites the day before,” Bacon wrote that Trump is “an apologist for Putin and the Russian invasion” and called it “an embarrassment.” He added that “Putin is playing President Trump like never seen before to a U.S. President,” and said the administration’s decision to reduce intelligence sharing with Ukraine and access to Starlink “equates to aiding the invader & the war criminal who bombs cities.” He warned that Trump’s agenda in the lame-duck session will be “dead” unless the administration reverses course.
What Comes Next
Bacon is not seeking reelection and will leave Congress in January, which leaves the lame-duck session after the November 3 midterms as one of his last opportunities to act on Russia policy. Trump’s post suggests he intends to keep the sanctions waiver in place while he pursues talks, saying he can sign “that document” later or “any time that I want.” Whether Congress can muster the votes to force the issue, and whether other Republicans follow Bacon’s lead, will help determine whether the waiver holds as the war in Ukraine and the war with Iran continue.