On Monday, television personality Geraldo Rivera drew attention by offering unusually positive remarks about President Donald Trump during an appearance on NewsNation. Rivera, who has often criticized Trump over the years, shifted his tone in praising the president’s handling of a key foreign policy issue.
Rivera commended Trump’s recent efforts to put pressure on Russia to enter peace negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, calling it a constructive approach to resolving the conflict. The comments stood out given Rivera’s history of sharp critiques, including frequent clashes with Trump during his time in office and his commentary on the former president’s conduct after the 2020 election.
While Rivera has occasionally expressed admiration for Trump’s political instincts or policy decisions, his overall posture has generally been skeptical. His latest statements suggest a softening in that stance, at least on matters of international diplomacy.
“I again am so proud of President Trump for making this effort,” Rivera stated during the interview. “I really believe that he’s trying and that the world will see that Russia, in some ways, is a paper tiger.”
He also noted the futility of Russia’s ongoing efforts. “One hundred and thirty million Russians, 450 million Europeans, 330 million Americans, I think the math is on our side,” he remarked. “Russia is not what Russia was when it was the Soviet Union, and we have to stop thinking of Putin as being this boogie man, larger than life, that can keep us up at night.”
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A few hours before Rivera expressed his positive views about Trump’s meeting with Putin, a poll revealed that many people were pleased with the decision. The survey, conducted by InsiderAdvantage after last week’s summit in Alaska, found that Trump’s approval rating stood at 54 percent.