If You Think Trump Is Getting Played By Putin, or Is Changing His Mind on Putin or Russia, It Is You Who Are Getting Played
- john raymond
- Jul 10
- 3 min read
There’s a persistent and dangerous illusion circulating among certain Western commentators and officials—that Donald Trump is being manipulated by Putin, that his erratic statements are a sign of incoherence rather than intent, and that his occasional tough-sounding words about Russia mark a shift in policy.
They do not. And if you think they do, you are the one being played.
Let’s be absolutely clear: Trump is not the victim of Putin’s strategy. He is part of it.
Every time Trump makes noise about holding Russia accountable, or claims—however vaguely—that he’ll support Ukraine, people latch on to these comments as signs of change.
They mistake surface tension for structural transformation. They say, “He sounds more serious now.” They tell European leaders to keep the faith. They look for coherence in the chaos, but fail to grasp the game that’s actually being played.
Trump’s “tough talk” on Putin is not a break in the pattern—it is the pattern.
The Reflexive Loop
When pressure builds, Trump feints. He releases a statement. He holds a photo op. He lets a Patriot missile promise slip into a press release. But the follow-through never comes—or if it does, it comes in broken fragments. Partial deliveries. Canceled orders. Legal delays. Bureaucratic foot-dragging. Waivers. Loopholes. Executive interpretations that void the intent of Congress.
Then time passes. The headlines cool. And Russia gets what it needs: more time, more breathing room, more delay.
This isn’t incompetence. This is asymmetric warfare by reflexive control. The deception is not meant to convince Putin. It is meant to deceive you—to make you believe Trump is correcting course when in fact he is enacting the next stage of the plan.
The Pattern Is the Strategy
Here is the pattern:
Trump praises or helps Putin in some way.
Trump comes under fire from allies or domestic critics.
Trump says something vaguely hawkish to throw them off.
Behind the scenes, Trump quietly stalls aid, undermines NATO, or disrupts sanctions enforcement.
Western media declares “mixed signals.”
Ukraine bleeds. Putin survives. Trump avoids accountability.
Rinse. Repeat.
If you haven’t noticed by now, the contradiction is the method. Trump doesn’t need to convince everyone—he just needs to confuse them. And he has done so with great success.
Not a Pawn—An Operator
It’s time to dispense with the idea that Trump is being “used” by Putin. That’s a fiction for people too afraid to admit what’s happening.
Trump is not being played. He is playing you. It is you—you!—who is being played!
He understands what Putin needs. He understands the power of delay, of undermining trust in institutions, of flattering authoritarians, of demoralizing allies. And he uses that understanding—not because he is a strategic genius, but because he knows his survival depends on alignment with the autocratic entente.
Trump’s regime security is intertwined with Putin’s. When Putin wins, Trump thrives.
When Putin suffers, Trump’s world shrinks. They are not adversaries. They are co-actors in an asymmetric strategy aimed at dismantling the post-World War II order.
The Drag Is the Dagger
The most damaging attacks do not come in the form of open betrayal. They come dressed as loyalty. They sound like promises. They look like briefings. They wear the clothes of seriousness. But they are sabotage in slow motion.
A Patriot missile shipment promised—but only a third delivered, maybe.
A sanctions bill stalled—then neutered with a waiver.
Aid packages delayed—then lost in procedural fog.
That’s the game. And the longer you wait for the “real Trump” to emerge, the more you become an accomplice to your own defeat.
So Stop Being Played
If you are still reading Trump’s statements as meaningful policy shifts—if you believe his tone has changed, or that he is “waking up” to the Russia threat—then the reflexive control operation has succeeded.
You are not watching Trump get manipulated. You are watching him manipulate you.
He speaks to buy time. He promises to buy credibility. And then he delivers nothing but delay, sabotage, and excuses.
Stop projecting hope onto Trump. Start reading the pattern. Start planning for the version of the future in which Trump is not your ally, but your adversary—disguised as your partner.
Because that’s what he is.
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