Neocon Energy: GOP Candidates, Debate Crowd Support Ukraine vs Russia

Most contenders in the Republican presidential primary field firmly rejected the ‌party’s rising isolationist tide ⁤during the debate on Wednesday, with‌ nearly every GOP candidate saying they support continued military⁤ aid to Ukraine ⁤in its defense against Russia.

Out of the eight candidates on ​stage, only Vivek⁢ Ramaswamy said he would cut aid, while Florida governor‍ Ron DeSantis gave a noncommittal response.‌ The other candidates’ defenses​ of ‍American support for Ukraine were met⁤ with applause from the debate crowd.

The strong show of ⁣support for Ukraine comes ​as some ⁣conservative pundits and activists have lobbied for the United States to stay out ⁣of⁤ the conflict. On Thursday, the⁣ Heritage Foundation launched an ad campaign opposing the Ukraine funding.

Clifford ‍May, the president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said ​there has always been a small group of isolationists in the GOP, but this group has been supplemented recently by some Republicans who either underestimate⁢ Russian ⁤president Vladimir Putin or dislike Ukraine because of Hunter Biden’s influence-peddling in the country.

“Some conservatives ‌don’t understand ⁣who Putin is. They think he’s ⁤a defender⁣ of Christendom,” said May. “His mission, and I think he ⁣feels​ this strongly, is to restore ​the Russian empire, which for a time was rebranded as the Soviet empire.”

Ramaswamy, the only candidate who during the debate ​objected⁤ to the aid, was booed‍ by the audience when he argued that​ “Ukraine‍ is not a​ priority for the United States of America.”

“I think that⁢ this is disastrous, that we are protecting against an invasion ⁢across somebody else’s border, when we should use those same military resources to prevent ‍the invasion of our ‍southern border in the United ⁣States of America,” said Ramaswamy.

May said Ramaswamy’s position on Ukraine is likely an attempt to peel off votes from a segment of former president Donald Trump’s base, rather than a serious ​policy view.

“My ⁢guess is he’s not looking carefully ‌at the Ukraine-Russia equation as part of foreign ⁢policy, but​ looking where ⁢he can drive his poll numbers up,” said May.

Other candidates on stage slammed Ramaswamy’s position, with former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley saying Ramaswamy has “no foreign policy experience,⁤ and it shows.”

Former vice president ‌Mike Pence argued‌ that the United States can protect its borders and ⁣conduct⁣ foreign policy at the same time, saying that Ramaswamy ​has a “pretty small view of⁤ the greatest nation on earth.”

“We can do⁢ both, Vivek,”‌ said Pence. “We’ve done both. We’ve been the leader of the⁣ free world and the arsenal ‍of democracy for years.”

Ramaswamy shot back: “I have a news flash. The USSR does not exist anymore. It fell​ back in⁢ 1990.”

“I’m sorry if I ‌insulted ​ [Putin] ⁣ by calling him⁢ a communist,”⁣ responded Pence. “He is a dictator and a murderer, and the United States of America needs ‍to‌ stand against authoritarianism.”