In 2022, you asked us to pray for Ukraine.
You wrote:
Putin is the enemy of the free world and must be stopped.
Before party, we are Americans. And America has a responsibility to defend freedom. That is why I support Biden’s decision to sanction Russia’s banking industry.
But we have to do more.
Russia is no longer worthy of a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. I joined a resolution with several House colleagues calling for their removal.
We must crush Russia with economic sanctions, including the energy sector. They must be cut off from the free world economically and diplomatically to pay for Putin’s reign of terror.
In April, 2024 you wrote about peace through strength:
You don’t need me to tell you that we live in a dangerous world right now. Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel last weekend reminded us of that. Crime is rising here at home, our border is wide open, China is eyeing Taiwan, Russia is continuing its war against Ukraine, and Israel is fighting for its right to exist.
Putin, Xi, and Iran are, to use the words of Speaker Mike Johnson, a “new axis of evil.” Unfortunately, we have a leader, President Biden, who lacks the strength necessary to defend democracy and freedom abroad. His botched Afghanistan withdrawal, slow response to Russian aggression, appeasement of Iran, and failure to defend our nation’s borders have made our entire world less safe. Our enemies are watching this administration, and they’re liking what they’re seeing.
Our enemies are watching this administration, and they’re liking what they’re seeing.
You’ve never been shy about criticizing former President Biden for Putin’s actions and the war in Ukraine. So much so that I have to wonder about your total silence related to the ‘press conference’ (one could really call it an ambush) between Zelensky and Trump/Vance.
Never in the history of this country have we subjected a friend and ally to the treatment Zelenskyy received. Never have we seen a US President and Vice President chastise and bully a visiting dignitary like we did on Friday. And to see such a wholehearted embrace of Putin—Putin!—completely negates everything this country has accomplished for the last seventy years. More, it has negated everything this country has stood for, for 250 years.
And not one word from you. Not even a quiet murmur of “I say…”
I watched Secretary of State Rubio sit glumly on a couch next to VP Vance, a picture of misery, wanting to be anywhere but in that room. I watched amateur journalists ask profound questions like, “Why aren’t you wearing a suit,” as if Zelenskyy’s only concern was whether he should wear single-breasted or double.
(And many people on social media have noted that no one has ever asked Elon Musk this question. I guess US oligarchs can do what they want.)
Trump and Vance berated Zelenskyy, with petty demands for ‘thank yous’ and snide asides about him being the reason this war is still ongoing. Not one criticism of Putin. In fact, Trump praised Putin. Praised him to Zelenskyy’s face—praised the man who has decimated Ukraine, killing tens of thousands of people.
I’m astonished Trump didn’t repeat his earlier assertion that it was really Ukraine that started the war.
And what have we heard from some of your fellow Republican Congressional members?
Senator Graham:
“What I saw in the Oval Office was disrespectful, and I don’t know if we can ever do business with Zelenskiy again,” Graham, a close Trump ally, told reporters as he left the White House after the clash, which drove relations with Kyiv’s most important wartime ally to a new low.
“He either needs to resign and send somebody over that we can do business with, or he needs to change,” the South Carolina senator said.
And then there’s the House Speaker:
“Thanks to President Trump – the days of America being taken advantage of and disrespected are OVER,” Speaker Mike Johnson posted on X.
“Zelenskyy could have left the White House today with a peace deal for his country, ending this conflict. Instead, he chose to disrespect our President and nation,” Rep. Diane Harshbarger, R-Tenn., posted on X. “Thank you, President Trump and Vice President Vance, for standing up for our country!”
Not all Republicans were willing to sell out our country in abject fear of Trump.
Representative Don Bacon, a moderate Republican from Nebraska, threw his support behind Kyiv.
“A bad day for America’s foreign policy. Ukraine wants independence, free markets and rule of law. It wants to be part of the West. Russia hates us and our Western values. We should be clear that we stand for freedom,” he said in a statement.
But you? Not a peep. Not a word. You’ve sat silent through the destruction of our government, You’ve remained silent as good, hard-working government employees are fired solely to feed a score board. You’ve turned away as Trump has given Elon Musk virtual control over the country.
And now. The man who asked us to pray for Ukraine, and to show peace through strength and who admonished Biden because he supposedly didn’t do enough for Ukraine…
You stay silent while the President and Vice President of the United States wraps Ukraine up in pretty paper, and gifts it to Putin—not noticing, or caring, that the United States got tied up in the bow.
Sources
Buddy Carter: Pray for Ukraine
Buddy Carter: Peace Through Strength
Trump-Zelenskiy clash divides US Republicans, dims aid prospects
Democrats dismayed, Republicans applaud after White House says Trump kicked out Zelenskyy
Volodymyr Zelenskyy prefers Zelenskyy, though Zelenskiy and Zelensky are also common spellings of his name