Republicans have been softening their stance on Russia ever since Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election following Russian hacking of his Democratic opponents.

At about 2 a.m. last Tuesday, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin stood on the Senate floor and explained why he opposed sending more aid to help Ukraine fend off the invasion launched in 2022 by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I don’t like this reality,” Johnson said. “Vladimir Putin is an evil war criminal.” But he quickly added: “Vladimir Putin will not lose this war.”

That argument — that the Russian president cannot be stopped so there’s no point in using American taxpayer dollars against him — marks a new stage in the Republican Party’s growing acceptance of Russian expansionism in the age of Donald Trump.

  • Flying Squid
    28•9 months ago

    Imagine if Saint Reagan was told that in 2024, his party would be all about supporting a Russia run by a former KGB officer.

    • @[email protected]
      4•9 months ago

      He might be initially shocked, but the Russia of today is damn near pure Reaganomics with no separation of church and state. Once he realized that, I’m sure he’d sell out too.