Washington, DC, October 13, 2026 --  

The president's unhinged shift toward pro-Russia policies promises to embolden his opposition both before and after America's mid-term election.

As a desperate Donald Trump braces for a mid-term backlash, his ham-fisted attempts at damage control are inspiring an unlikely rebellion in his ranks. Two years after cutting off all financial and military donations to Ukraine to support his America First agenda, a group of pro-Ukraine Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives are openly opposing the president on his decision to import Russian diesel fuel.

Trump's plan to import diesel from Russia seeks to counter a price spike of his own making. By launching an ill-planned war against Iran, the president has betrayed his America First agenda with little to show for it. And the resulting gasoline price rises, with diesel fuel prices spiking the most, has hit his working class and rural base hard.

Rather than providing an effective solution to the problem, Trump's Russian diesel import plan creates new practical, legal and political problems. Practically speaking, Russia's diesel export capacity is not enough to return U.S. prices to what they were before the war¹, even if Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries cease. Legally speaking, Russian petroleum imports were outlawed by Congress in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 and that law cannot be reversed by executive order.² And politically, cozying up to Vladimir Putin to get diesel fuel to help fix what was broken by the elective Iranian war is poisonous to pro-Ukraine Republicans and is hardly any more palatable to their America First colleagues.

Already, a group of pro-Ukraine Republicans have joined Democratic lawmakers in denouncing Trump's Russian diesel import plan. These include Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) Susan Collins (R-ME), Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE). ³ Such direct and open rebellion by congressional Republicans has been rare during Trump's second term, where Republicans have feared the president's power to unseat them with pro-Trump primary challengers. But with Trump's approval rating at all time lows this term -- dropping to 29 percent in last week's Pew survey⁴, lawmakers' fear of Trump has been replaced by fear of being dragged down by association with Trump.

Democrats' opportunity to capitalize on Trump's unpopularity in the mid-terms is a double-edged sword. While it promises to boost their numbers, it also promises to eliminate anti-Trump Republican allies in Congress. Of the Republicans who spoke out against Russian diesel imports, two of them risk being unseated by Democrats in November (Senator Collins and Rep. Fitzpatrick).⁵ And Rep. Bacon is already on his way out in January, having chosen to retire rather than face a Trump-backed primary challenge earlier this year. Bacon's seat is favored to be picked up by the Democrats.⁶ While replacing independent-minded Republicans with Democrats isn't necessarily good news for Trump, it is even worse news for the rest of us. For the next two years, it will be harder to get Republicans to take the lead in fighting Trump's most unpopular policies, and longer-term, it will make it harder to bring the Republican party back from its MAGA bender.

Meanwhile, President Trump is doubling down on plan for a Russian rescue from the Iran war's petroleum price disaster. He has demanded that Ukraine cease attacking Russian oil refineries under threat of a cut off of U.S. arms sales (currently paid for by the Europeans) and U.S. intelligence sharing, and has publicly called for replacing Zelenskyy as Ukrainian president.⁷ Such outrageous threats promise to boost congressional opposition to Trump's policy toward Ukraine. Any Republicans in Congress who are still sitting quietly on the fence and manage to survive Trump's self-inflicted mid-term disaster, are unlikely to be in a mood to defend the president's most vindictive and egregious pro-Russia policies.

Of course, increased anti-Trump power in Congress will do nothing to alter the president's worse impulses. But this same power will reduce his ability to act on these impulses, at least in areas like foreign trade and spending where congressional power is paramount.

Notes:

1. Forbes, Trump's Diesel Deal With Russia Unlikely To Move Pump Prices By Much, October 12, 2026

2. Congress.gov, H.R.6968 - Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, as posted October 13, 2024

3. The Hill, Backlash grows against Russia diesel deal as Trump claims Ukraine energy ceasefire, Oct. 11, 2026

4. The Hill, Trump approval sinks to 30 percent in new survey, October 9, 2026

5. Politico, Brian Fitzpatrick won by 13 points in 2024. Now, Democrats smell blood in the water, October 11, 2026

6. New York Times, Nebraska 2nd Congressional nDistrict 2026: Latest Polls, October 9, 2026

7. Associated Press, Trump says Ukraine should get a new president as he blames Zelenskyy for US diesel prices, October 10, 2026