Schumer says he has ‘great fear’ Trump will ‘cave’ to Putin

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he has a "great fear" that President Trump will "cave" to Russian President Vladimir Putin over ending the war in Ukraine.

Schumer joined CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, where host Dana Bash asked him about the latest developments between Trump, Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as the effort to wrap up the war drags on.

“My great fear, Dana, is that Trump will just cave into Putin. That's been the overall indication all along,” Schumer said. “And of course, the bottom line is very simple, that if we cave to Putin, if Trump caves into Putin … it's bad in three very bad ways.”

Schumer argued that it's bad for the U.S. to "abandon Ukraine" after the country has sacrificed throughout the more than three-year war.

He noted that it would also be bad for the Western societies who have rallied behind Ukraine against Putin because it would “undercut” the United States’s alliances.

The New York Democrat said the third thing, and “worst of all,” if Trump caves to Putin over ending the war, it will send a dangerous signal to dictators across the world.

"It sends a signal to every dictator in China, in North Korea, in Iran, that if you stand up and bully Trump, you're going to get your way," Schumer said.

“So, I am very worried about where he is headed. I think that he is in a position where he feels he can sell out Zelensky,” he continued. “He’s sort of saying yes one day and no the next day. But overall, the trend is very, very bad.”

Trump and Zelensky met on Saturday ahead of Pope Francis’s funeral in Rome. The White House said the meeting was “productive” and more details would follow.

Zelensky said the two discussed “a lot one on one” and he was hopeful for results to come, including a full and unconditional ceasefire with Russia.

The discussion came just days after the White House said Trump’s patience with Zelensky was wearing “very thin.” Trump isn’t thrilled with Putin, either. He said he thinks Putin may be stringing him along after the latest deadly strikes on Ukraine.