President Donald Trump pushed back Monday on criticism from Republicans over his deal to procure Russian diesel fuel.
Last week, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an agreement that would see Russia export nearly 5 million tons of diesel to the United States, including 300,000 tons in the immediate future. Trump has taken a number of steps in recent weeks as a means of addressing increased fuel prices ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, but even some Republicans have scrutinized the president over the Russia deal.
The announcement drew pushback from several Republican lawmakers, including Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Curtis (R-UT), and Thom Tillis (R-NC).
“I think these are Republicans that can’t really be serious,” the president said of the GOP critics before departing the White House on Monday for a campaign trip to Ohio. “We make a lot of oil. We could do a restriction on oil, but the rest of the world would be greatly, greatly affected if we do that.”
“We could do a restriction, you know, a cap on diesel. Keep it all for ourselves. That would have a very big impact,” he told reporters. “And it’s not really a deal with me. It’s a deal to the rest of the world. So anything that can help our farmers, our ranchers, I like.”
TRUMP ANNOUNCES DIESEL FUEL DEAL WITH RUSSIA TO ADDRESS ELEVATED PRICES
In addition to some Republican lawmakers, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested that Trump’s deal would make it more difficult to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The president, unprompted, suggested on Monday that Zelensky in turn should “focus on making a deal” to end the war himself.