Ukrainian Crisis Reveals GOP's Inability To Form Positions, Message, Or Even Unify
BY JASON MICIAK at PoliticusUSA
Ukrainian Crisis Reveals GOP’s Inability To Form Positions, Message, Or Even Unify
https://www.politicususa.com/2022/02/23/ukrainian-crisis-reveals-gops-inability-to-form-positions-message-or-even-unify.html
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Republicans have taken positions on Ukraine that span the spectrum from simply cheering for Putin and hoping he wins (Tucker Carlson, Donald Trump), to warning the United States that we had best not get involved because we would be utterly destroyed by Putin’s new and highly trained military (as opposed to ours, which has been “playing in a sandbox,” a quote from Rep. MadisonCawthorn and a view approximating Ted Cruz’s beliefs), that it is Joe Biden’s fault that Russia even wants to invade Ukraine, all the way to the firm belief that the Russians must be contained but Joe Biden is simply too weak to prevent it, which is why Russia is making its move in the first place.
But Politico has an article out this morning premised upon the fact that the Republicans not only lack any sort of unified position, other than stating that Biden is handling this poorly and they could do better, Trump or not, but also that the GOP’s inability to articulate the problem only exacerbates the most important consideration, what they believe should be done and thus how to most effectively criticize Biden.
Even as Trump portrays himself as better-equipped to counter Putin, the majority of congressional Republicans are backing Biden’s vow to impose crushing sanctions on Russia after its troops entered eastern Ukraine on Tuesday. Some have even praised Biden’s moves, like the deployment of additional U.S. troops to Eastern Europe to boost NATO’s defenses.
But a vocal GOP minority on and off Capitol Hill — represented by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Fox News host Tucker Carlson and Ohio Senate candidate J.D. Vance, among others — has taken a third path, actively arguing against any U.S. involvement in the region while still dinging Biden. They argue that expanding the U.S. commitment to NATO is a mistake, and that the president should instead focus on countering China and securing America’s southern border.
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