President Donald Trump defended U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday after a leaked phone call showed the diplomat advising a top Russian aide on how to approach Trump.

Witkoff’s phone call with Yuri Ushakov, top foreign policy aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, took place last month. Bloomberg published a transcript of the call on Tuesday, igniting backlash and calls for Witkoff’s removal for allegedly favoring Russia over Ukraine.

Trump dismissed complaints over the phone call, saying that what took place was “standard” negotiation.

“That’s a standard thing, you know, because he’s gotta sell this to Ukraine, he’s gotta sell Ukraine to Russia. That’s what a deal maker does. You gotta say, look, they want this, you’ve gotta convince him with this, and you know, that’s a very standard form of negotiation,” Trump said when asked about the phone call aboard Air Force One on Tuesday evening.

“I haven’t heard it, but I heard it was standard negotiation. And I would imagine he’s saying the same thing to Ukraine, because each party has to give and take,” the president added.

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Trump also dismissed concerns that Witkoff is pro-Russian.

“No, I think, look, this war could go on for years, and Russia’s got a lot more people and a lot more soldiers, you know? So I think if Ukraine can make a deal, it’s a good thing. I think it’s great for both,” said Trump.

The phone call sparked backlash from some Republicans, such as Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska.

“For those who oppose the Russian invasion and want to see Ukraine prevail as a sovereign & democratic country, it is clear that Witkoff fully favors the Russians. He cannot be trusted to lead these negotiations. Would a Russian paid agent do less than he? He should be fired,” said Bacon.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania called the phone call “a major problem. And one of the many reasons why these ridiculous side shows and secret meetings need to stop.”

In the October 14 phone call, Witkoff advised Ushakov on how Putin should approach Trump to have the most favorable meeting, including flattering Trump with compliments over the recently struck ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The U.S. envoy said a similar plan to the 20-point Israel-Hamas plan could be struck between Russia and Ukraine.

Witkoff also advised Ushakov that Putin should schedule a phone call with Trump before Trump was set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“Maybe he (Putin) says to President Trump: you know, Steve and Yuri discussed a very similar 20-point plan to peace and that could be something that we think might move the needle a little bit, we’re open to those sorts of things — to explore what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done,” Witkoff said, according to the transcript published by Bloomberg.

“Now, me to you, I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere. But I’m saying instead of talking like that, let’s talk more hopefully because I think we’re going to get to a deal here. And I think Yuri, the president will give me a lot of space and discretion to get to the deal,” Witkoff said.

A coalition of officials from 20 states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration on Tuesday over the government’s plan to overhaul an Obama-era approach to homelessness.

Nineteen state attorneys general and two governors joined the lawsuit, led by New York Democratic Attorney General Letitia James. The lawsuit seeks to stop reforms to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s “Continuum of Care” program funding, which provides grants to groups that provide housing to homeless people and families.

The Trump administration plans to significantly reduce funds allocated to so-called “Housing First” providers. Under the department’s current homelessness grant structure, nearly all funding goes to providers that offer housing without requiring tenants to stay sober, pursue job training, or participate in other support services.

“HUD has adopted new policies, without any meaningful public input, that reverse the agency’s longstanding support for Housing First policies and fundamentally undermine the goal of providing dependable housing,” the lawsuit states. “A Housing First model provides stable housing to individuals without preconditions like sobriety or minimum income. It is a model that Congress, experts, and, until recently, HUD itself, have agreed improves housing stability and health while reducing costs.”

The lawsuit argues that the Trump administration’s proposed changes to the Continuum of Care program “are unlawful several times over.”

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The Housing First strategy was introduced to federal programs under the administration of former President George W. Bush. Housing First was massively expanded under former President Barack Obama, who promised in 2010 to eliminate homelessness within a decade with major reforms to the federal approach to homelessness.

Critics of Housing First say the strategy has led to a backsliding in efforts to combat homelessness in the United States. Critics argue that the approach falls short by failing to address the root causes of homelessness, such as economic insecurity, mental illness, and drug addiction.

A 2022 report by the Cicero Institute shows that, contrary to the Obama administration’s 2010 aims, homelessness in the United States has significantly worsened in areas that rely on a Housing First approach. The study found that homelessness increased by nearly 25% in areas that exclusively rely on the Housing First model.

Rep. Andy Barr, a Kentucky Republican, is leading an effort in Congress to address the federal government’s reliance on the housing first model. Barr, who is running to replace outgoing Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), has introduced legislation to cut funding for housing providers that use the Housing First approach.

“Housing First policy shuts out providers who offer critical wraparound services that are often essential for helping individuals break the cycle of homelessness,” Barr said. “We need to abandon HUD’s exclusive reliance on Housing First in favor of an all-hands-on-deck approach to equip the best and most effective providers with the federal funds needed to end homelessness.”

The states suing include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin, along with the commonwealths of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.