Trump aide spars with Loomer over Zelensky

The escalating feud between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over a recent diesel deal with Russia has spilled into MAGA circles, sparking a clash between a Trump adviser and far-right activist Laura Loomer over her defense of the Ukrainian leader.

Loomer, a staunch supporter of Trump who has informally advised the president in the past, recalled her July interview with Zelensky in Ukraine, during which he expressed support for Trump.

“When I interviewed President Zelenskyy and he invited me to Mariinsky Palace, he told me he would happily hold elections in Ukraine once Putin stopped attacking Ukriane [sic],” she wrote on the social platform X on Sunday.

“He had nothing but praise for President Trump and said he is eager to sign a deal to end the war, but that ‘deal’ cannot be unconditional surrender of Ukraine’s sovereignty to Russia,” she continued.

Alex Bruesewitz, a top adviser to Trump whose political consulting firm runs several of Trump’s most prominent social media accounts, pushed back on Loomer’s defense of Zelensky and accused him of undermining the president.

“He called the President ‘weak’ two days ago and bombed oil refineries moments after the President announced a deal with Russia,” Bruesewitz wrote on X in response to Loomer’s post. “Let’s stop pretending that he’s a good ally.”

He continued: “If you’re still in communication with him, you should tell him to stop undermining Trump and hurting the American people with his actions.”

Trump suggested Saturday that Ukraine should replace Zelensky with a leader willing to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war after Zelensky criticized the White House’s decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel.

“He wants to make problems for the world,” Trump said of Zelensky, blaming him for the surge in diesel prices. “He wants to make problems for our farmers, our ranchers with diesel fuel because Russia supplies a large portion of the diesel fuel throughout the world.”

The dispute also drew in Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), who clashed with Bruesewitz after criticizing Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s remarks about Zelensky.

“Why don’t you turn on Starlink over Russia so the Ukrainians can take out Russian ballistic missile launchers?” Crenshaw replied to Musk, whose post echoed calls for a change in Ukraine’s leadership.

Bruesewitz fired back at Crenshaw, pointing to the Texas Republican’s defeat in this year’s primary against Trump-backed state Rep. Steve Toth.

“As an outgoing, backbench member of Congress, please stop trying to obstruct President Trump’s efforts to negotiate a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia,” Bruesewitz wrote.

Crenshaw, a vocal proponent of U.S. military aid to Ukraine, responded with what he called a “free civics lesson.”

“I know the subject of geopolitics is hard for keyboard warriors like yourself, but it turns out that increasing your own leverage and decreasing your opponent’s leverage is what creates the conditions for a peace deal,” Crenshaw wrote.

The exchanges come as Trump faces mounting pressure to curb rising energy costs ahead of the midterm elections.

He received pushback from Zelensky and Democratic lawmakers over a recent agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to funnel millions of tons of Russian diesel to the global marketplace in an effort to address fuel costs.

Zelensky called the agreement a “birthday gift” to Putin, warning that it could provide Russia with additional revenue to finance its more than four-year war against Ukraine.

Ukraine subsequently struck a major Russian oil refinery hours after Trump’s announcement of the deal, further escalating tensions over the agreement.

Trump on Sunday declared an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine “effective immediately,” warning the two countries not to break it. On Monday, Zelensky accused Russia of violating the ceasefire by continuing to strike Ukraine’s energy facilities.