While the Western world had been anxiously watching whether the United States would come to Ukraine’s aid, right-wing conservatives were doing everything in their power to thwart the support.
On Saturday, six months after taking the House Speakership, Republican Mike Johnson said, finally, “I believe the intel. I think that Vladimir Putin would continue to march through Europe if he were allowed. To put it bluntly, I would rather send bullets to Ukraine than American boys.”
One has to wonder what took him so long. Whether it’s the influence of military experts or public opinion, matters not.
Johnson did right by America by effectively garnering bipartisan support to advance substantial financial aid to not only Ukraine but also Israel and Taiwan, also under threat by either terrorist groups or ruthless dictators.
For Ukraine — and all of Europe — the difference will be immediate. The stakes were that high.
The legislation will provide funds to replenish our diminished weapons stockpiles as well as new weapons for Ukraine and monetary loans.
Without the aid, Ukraine’s situation was grim. With its eastern border with Russia pummeled beyond recognition, Ukraine is losing its hold.
And if Ukraine were to succumb? It would determine the scope of the future world order.
What some refuse to accept is that what’s good for Europe is also good for the United States.
Were Russian President Vladimir Putin to overtake Ukraine, he has made clear his goal of retaking the “Russian Empire,” including the Baltic states of Hungary and Poland which, as members of NATO, would pull the United States to their defense.
Overnight, our lives would be upended, much as those in Ukraine were when Putin invaded in March of 2022.
PUTIN HAS REVELED in Republicans’ resistance to help Ukraine, betting that the likes of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, and her obsequious fawning to his every word would hold sway among her Congressional cohorts.
Two things upset Putin’s plan.
Speaker Johnson has not only begun to believe “the intel,” but is reading the polls.
Almost 70 percent of Republican voters say Putin’s westward advances must be stopped. They know a bloodthirsty despot when they see one.
