Beltway Insider: Trump, Putin, Iran, Middle East War, Ukraine, EU Summit, Midterms, Zacharia Out
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Saturday, 17 October 2026 14:10
- Written by Janet Walker
President Trump, in another surprise move has stunned members of both parties, and European partners, has issued an economic waiver sanction that exempts Russian President Vladimir Putin from legislative sanctions that were due to be imposed.
The President's job approval rating, according to The New York Times for the period ending October 17, 2026, of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President has remained consistent at 37% and those who disapprove of his effectiveness has remained consistent at 60%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.
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Trump Cozies Up to Putin, Again
President Trump, who has spent this second term vacillating between cozying up to Russian President Vladimir and denouncing him as a tyrannical despot, who would rather destroy his own country then consider to a peace agreement with neighboring Ukraine.
The pendulum has swung again, and President Trump, this week sent a reverberating shock wave across western Europe and the Ukraine, when he sent an economic sanction waiver to Congress. The waiver stops any sanctions proposed in the Graham Act, the legislation named after the late Senator Lindsey Graham, who died unexpectedly last July on the night he returned from a trip to the Ukraine.
Graham had been instrumental in building support for the bill's passage, which took many trip to the Ukraine, and more than a year of peddling its merits to fellow republicans who were also reeling from Trump's pendulum swings. The bill passed after the senator death, and the sanctions, which were intended to squeeze other nations from conducting business with Russia, were set to be enacted this week.
"The decision comes as Mr. Trump has in recent weeks embraced Russia and expressed frustration that Ukraine's attacks on Russian refineries were helping to push up gasoline and diesel prices around the world. The biggest factor limiting supplies, though, remains the war in Iran," The New York Times reported.
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Mid-Term Elections Calculations
With the Mid-terms elections less than two weeks away, and prognosticators and pundits are announcing the expectation of sufficient republican losses enough to flip the House, and a four seat turnover to close the senate gap.
President Trump, who understands the mid-terms could effectively terminated any control over the House of Representatives and turn his remaining two years into a lame duck session, with much moving but nothing being accomplished, as brokered a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to import diesel fuel in hopes of addressing one aspect of the long-term Middle Eastern war, that has impacted the nation's economy.
Ever Widening Middle East War
When Operation Epic Fury, aptly renamed Operation Epic Fail, began in February, the vision of the mid-term result were much different and include flag-waving Americans, a streaming tickertape parade, accolades from European partners, and a Nobel Prize, as the United States led by the people's champion President Trump, dismantled the Iran regime and instilled a new democratic government.
One can hear the scratch of the needle as the vision comes to a screeching halt. Nine months later, the United States has initiated a widening Middle eastern war, which has effectively closed down the Hormuz Strait, the waterway controlled by the Iranian government which effectively ferries 90 percent of the world's oil, including oil to the United States.
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Over the course of the nine months, the price of gasoline has jumped significantly in all regions of the country, from a national average of $2.91 in February 2026 to $4.33 in October 2026, with many of the nations highly populated cities seeing considerably higher prices.
"Gas prices aren't budging much as crude oil prices remain high, once again nearing $100 per barrel. The national average has stayed above $4 per gallon since late July and is currently more than a dollar higher than it was this time last year. The fall months typically bring lower gas prices, but volatility in the oil market has led to seasonal record highs this year," AAA reported.
President Trump, who is unable or unwilling to broker a long term peace agreement with Iran, is using the opposed desperation to forced the regime back to the negotiating table.
In 2015, under the Obama Administration, then Secretary of State John Kerry spent two years brokering a deal with Iran to abandon the nuclear program. The Joint Comprehension Plan of Action was completed alongside the core member of the United Nations, the P5+1 nations, United States, Great Britain, China, France, Russian and the plus one is Germany.
The Trump Administration, and the president's personal desire to rewrite history, has pulled the nation into an unwinnable war. The Iran military is not be the most advanced, but they have many tribal factions, willing to initiate campaigns against the U.S. military, the great Satan, and topple the arrogance of the U.S.
Additionally, the Iranian government are supporters of many terror organizations, that have plagued society for decades without fail. They are like the whack-a-mole game, once you dismantle one another one arises. A land war would paralyzed the United States, as the terrain is vastly unknown, and a drone war has proven ineffective.
"Trump said Friday he had reached an agreement with Putin for Moscow to "immediately" supply 300,000 tons of diesel to American and global markets. The move comes amid a renewed push by the Administration to lower energy prices for Americans, which have skyrocketed since the Iran war began in February. The increased diesel fuel prices have shaken the loyalties of some of Trump's most ardent support groups, with farmers telling TIME their day-to-day operations are being severely impacted," Time Magazine reported.
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Trump and Putin Dominance and Control
The recent diesel deal between Trump and Putin, as many European partners, along with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky unable to understand the sudden shift in policy.
One day after Trump announced the diesel deal, "U.S. Senator Susan Collins joined a bipartisan group of senators, including Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and John Curtis (R-UT) in issuing the following statement opposing Russian diesel fuel imports to the United States:
"Congress explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022 to prevent American dollars from financing Putin's brutal war against Ukraine. Congress was clear: The U.S. should not import oil from Russia until it ends its aggression against Ukraine and ceases threats against our NATO Allies. President Trump's decision to allow Russian diesel imports to the U.S. runs directly counter to that law. The Administration has also failed to consult with Congress or submit any explanation to justify its decision as required by statute. The United States should not provide Putin with a financial lifeline while Russia continues to kill Ukrainian civilians. The Administration must immediately reverse course."
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed European Leaders, this week at the EU Summit in Brussels, as the shift in U.S. policy has created an uncertainty in the continued support of the United States to fight against Russian aggression.
As the Trump Administration uses a dominance and control methodology when dealing with Ukraine, and other European nations, who have increasingly been leaning on regional partners instead of the United States.
His need for superiority, in the negotiations, has now compelled Ukraine to seek assistance from the European Union, who see the Russian President as potential threat to western nations, particularly if Putin still maintains the belief he can reunify Russia to its Soviet Union glory.
"One idea rapidly rising back up the agenda is the fraught question of whether, or how, to make use of some hundreds of billions of euros of frozen Russian financial assets held in European banks. The bulk of these rest with the Euroclear depository in Brussels. A previous attempt to grab the funds and send them directly to Kyiv was blocked by the Belgian government ― and other countries less prominently ― over concerns it would be exposed to legal action," Politico.eu reported.
In geopolitics this moment is the crucible moment in the four year, Russia-Ukraine war, with the president's support appearing to create a boon in Putin's efforts to dominate and control the Ukraine. And conversely, as Trump has vacillated throughout this term between embracing each president and then quickly ostracizing both leaders, the possibility that in two weeks, after the November mid-terms, this deal which supplies Putin with money to build a war chest will be countered with a favorable option to the Ukraine.
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Coronavirus Total
At the order of the President of the United States, the U.S. no longer recognizes the value of The World Health Organization. The CDC has recommended every person from age six months, including senior citizens should receive at least one shot of an updated COVID-19 vaccine, annually. The death toll from Covid-19 has dramatically decreased, as has transmission of the virus. Even as confirmed new cases continue each week, fewer are dying from each new variants.
For the 7 days ending October 17, 2026, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported by the World Health Organization increased by 74,495 to 779,470,395. The total worldwide death toll did not increase over the past 7 days has increased by 183 to 7,117,659 deaths. The United States has stopped providing Covid data to the World Health Organization. (Data updated September 27, 2026, from the World Health Organization).
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White House Press Secretary Out
Newly appointed White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia as terminated from her position, after only five days, as the law school graduate, misrepresented her credentials and presented herself as a bar accepted attorney.
The decision to hire Zacharia, which was made by the president, alone, has many wondering if his libido acted as his guide. As the recently hired, now fired, Zacharia, an attractive female, resembles many of Trump's picks for front facing positions.
"Zacharia's attempts to defend herself during back-to-back appearances on Fox News had been similarly rocky—commentators on the conservative news channel, often complimentary of the administration, let Zacharia know she was off to a rough start. The president agreed, telling aides that Zacharia wasn't talented, according to a person who heard his remarks," The Wall Street Journal reported.
Zacharia law school credentials have been verified, and when asked where she passed the bar exam she replied, "China." Unfortunately for Zacharia, she had no idea the lion's den she was walking into, where every credential, word, and statement would be scrutinized to find any embellishments.
To be a practicing attorney in the United States, an individual must hold the minimum of a Juris Doctor (JD) degree, usually from an ABA-accredited law school. Pepperdine, where Ms. Zacharia graduated is accredited, the second caveat of membership is that all members must successfully pass the bar exam in the United States to practice in the United States. Some states allow waivers after at minimum one state bar exam has been taken and passed.
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For more information on President Donald Trump: Whitehouse.gov.
Sources: Various © Articles covered by Copyright protection.
Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five award-winning screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," a non-fiction narrative, "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," and "Songs of Freedom: A Collection of Biblical Teachings," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.
