Putin

No US Tomahawks from the US

by Dave

The decision not to provide Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles weakens Ukraine’s defenses. The war has no quick end. Trump wants to appease Putin, and this is a huge error.

Trump continues a theme that peace could be just around the corner if Putin and Zelensky would just sit down and cut a deal. Putin does not want a third of Ukraine, he wants it all. He wants Zelensky and the elected government gone.

“The massive overnight strike — launched hours before the conversation between Putin and President Trump — exposes Moscow’s real attitude toward peace,” Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. Olga Stefanishyna said in a statement Thursday.

Olga Stefanishyna was appointed to her post as the Ukrainian ambassador to the US in August 2025. Her message is clear, Putin talks peace, but he means surrender or we will destroy you. The Tomahawks would help Ukraine strike military bases within Russia, and make the war painful to them.

Olga Stefanishyna biography

Representing the US in the latest summit with Putin, is Steven Witkoff, a real estate executive. An excerpt from the Wikipedia post follows.

Steven Witkoff

In the interview, Witkoff spoke positively of Vladimir Putin. He called Putin a “great guy” and “super smart”. Witkoff said “I liked him, I think he was honest” and “I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy”.[72][73][74] According to Witkoff, Putin told him that he prayed for “his friend” Donald Trump following the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania.

Putin sees Steven Witkoff as someone anxious to cut a deal, without an understanding of what is at stake beyond the popularity of Donald Trump. Giving away 1/3 of Ukraine will give Putin a perfect base to continue his war. Ukraine must be defended, and it will take US joining with our allies.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Ukraine War: Unity among our Putin’s Partners, Latest developments

by Dave

The Shanghai Cooperative Organization (SCO) Conference and the military parade in Beijing immediately following the conference was to promote solidarity among our adversaries. It took place for just two days, August 31 and September 1. Donald Trump with his fixation on the trade imbalance, made it completely acceptable for India’s Prime Minister Modi to stand along side Putin and Xi Jinping.

The military parade further extended the visit of world leaders to September 3. It was to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. It was much more than this, the conference was designed to push forward economic cooperations with world leaders, and demonstrate China’s military power as well.

Trump’s foreign policy hinges on a false misconception – if you push hard enough, there will come compliance. What comes from the US unilaterally pushing, is push back, and between Putin and Xi Jinping, this was painfully obvious. There are 10 members to this organization which includes Iran, which is critical to designing and manufacturing drones with increased capacity to avoid being shot down.

North Korean President Kim Jong Un arrived by train to Beijing on September 2 so he could observe the military parade, and for meetings with Xi and Putin. See ABC news link:

North Korea’s Kim crosses into China to meet Xi, Putin for Beijing military parade

Trump appeared to make a major policy change, in his rambling speech to the UN:

“President Donald Trump said Tuesday afternoon that he thinks Ukraine, with help from the European Union, could win back its territory from Russia and return the country to its original borders. Trump had previously suggested numerous times that giving up some land would be a key component of resolving Ukraine’s war with Russia.”

So, did he mean original 2022 borders, after Crimea was taken by Russia? Or the 2014 borders with Crimea part of Ukraine. He hasn’t clarified this.

Trump says he now thinks Ukraine can win back all territory taken by Russia

Now, is Trump backing up his words with actions? Or backing down? It is difficult to say.

For Ukraine to wage a completely defensive, it would mean expending much more capital than Russia. To spend one million dollars to shoot down a drone costing $80,000 dollars is not cost efficient. And, the drone that is shot down, may be a decoy, costing practically nothing. Offense is many fold cheaper than defense. So, Ukraine wants attack cruise missiles from the US, namely the Tomahawk missiles, so it can attack targets within Russia.

Russia has numerous cruise missiles, which vary in terms of range, speed, payload and other capabilities. The BrahMos cruise missile has many variations and is jointly produced by Russia and India.

The US manufactured Tomahawk missiles also has many variants. The missile under consideration for Ukraine would have a range of 1,550 miles, and cost approximately 1.3 million dollars. Russia has stated that this would represent a significant escalation of the war.

Trump has stated that before providing the Tomahawks to Ukraine, he wants to know exactly how they are to be used. Of course, Ukraine will pledge to use the missiles for industrial and military targets, but once Ukraine has the missiles, they will select the targets.

The news story cited below is from October 2. Sources suggest the US will not provide the Tomahawks because our inventory is low. Our inventory of missiles is classified information, but some estimate US to have about 4,000 Tomahawk missiles.

US Tomahawk missile shipments to Ukraine unlikely, sources say

Ukraine continues an offensive war against Russia using drones. Ukraine claims drone strikes against ammo plant, oil terminal and weapons depot using drones. Russia continues attacks with large swarms of drones, attacking Ukraine infrastructure including gas pipelines, residential homes and other buildings.

War is both ugly and sad. But, to return Ukraine to Russian control, after 34 years of independence, with so many Ukrainians having given their lives defending their sovereignty and democracy is even sadder. So, if the US can not or does not choose to arm Ukraine with cruise missiles, I am hoping the European countries will.

China’s display of unity, with the world’s bad actors, namely Russia, North Korea and Iran has to be countered with US-European unity. Regaining India as an ally will require great diplomatic skill, and compromise. Forming alliances and long-term commitment is not what Trump does easily. But this is exactly the counter punch to the spectacle in China in September.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Putting a Smile on Putin’s Face

by Dave

The US is halting the shipment of defensive Patriot missiles to Ukraine. It is a clear sign that the US is letting Russia win this war. Ukraine desperately needs these missiles to defend their cities. Ukraine desparately needs these missiles to defend its cities.

The Patriot missiles were approved by Congress as part of a 66 billion dollar aid agreement for Ukraine under President Biden. As reported in the news, some Patriot missiles were already shipped to Ukraine, but Hegseth froze the transfer of custody from the US to Ukraine.

War is brutal. They count fatalities, but many die because medical facilities have been bombed and their wounds can’t be treated. Putin has indiscriminately bombed apartment buildings, hospitals, schools and power stations, to force Ukrainians to surrender.

Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense, supported this decision, by stating that the stockpiles of Patriot missile systems had become very low in the US. This was immediately contradicted by an analysis conducted by the military, that our stockpile of Patriot missiles were no lower than in the past.

NBC July 4, 2025, Hegseth halted weapons for Ukraine despite military analysis that the aid wouldn’t jeopardize U.S. readiness

Pete Hegseth doesn’t mind lying, because this is exactly what his boss does. In fact, it is what Trump expects from his Cabinet secretaries. Put an MAGA cap on, smile to the camera, and talk about supporting America’s readiness and greatness are all part of the game.

The above link states that the announcement blindsided the State Department, European leaders, members of Congress and Ukraine.

We do not know what Putin and Trump discussed yesterday, but the results are pretty evident.

CNN, July 4, 7:58 am, Russia launches record number of drones at Ukraine after latest Trump-Putin phone call

Last night’s attack was done with 538 drones and 11 missiles. The Kinzhal missiles were used in these attacks, which only a Patriot missile could shoot down. Well, if they are lucky. This attack occurred within hours of the Trump-Putin conversation.

Trump doesn’t care that Hegseth is lying. He doesn’t care if CNN and New York Times journalists, are on the spot and can show the damage to residential areas. Fox News will report on their website, stories about illegal immigration or Iran, not last night’s brutal attack on Kyiv and other major cities.

Trump is all about appearances and how this plays out in the media. What I am certain Putin let Trump know, is that they are the rightful owners of Ukraine and that Ukraine will be better off with a change in management after Zelensky is gone. What Putin wanted from Trump, is simply let Russia finish off Ukraine without any additional sanctions. Trump is on a rampage to punish all our trading partners with sanctions which are essentially embargos but it’s hands off on Russia.

Putin must be very happy. He can attack Ukraine with Impunity. It’s reported that North Korea is sending 30,000 troops to support Russia. Of course they are getting paid. Iran is supplying drones, and Iran must be very happy to sell them to Russia. China is also aiding Russia with military equipment.

His [Putin} eye still very much on the prize, Putin said last week: “We have a saying … where the foot of a Russian soldier steps, that is ours.”

June 30, 2025, Russia’s summer offensive in Ukraine underwhelms – but Kyiv won’t be celebrating.

You need to attack with missiles to destroy and occupy a country. Blowing up a Patriot missile systems (missiles, radar and launcher) lets Russia achieve complete air superiority. Putin’s strategy is very simple, drain Ukraine’s stockpile of their Patriot missiles, achieve complete air superiority and roll into Kyiv with tanks.

There will be celebrations in Washington on this Fourth of July holiday. The media will cover the signing of the Big Beautiful/Ugly Bill. But there will be no celebration in Ukraine.

Thank Trump for making America weaker than ever. Trump is America’s gift to Putin.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Links:

Wikipedia, Patriot Missiles

There were numerous other stories, which give a real good idea of Trump’s thinking. Steve Bannon was fired by Trump in this first term, but was recently spotted entering the White House. He said what Trump needed to do is “flood the zone” as explained below:

Newsweek: Steve Bannon’s ‘Flood the Zone’ Strategy Explained Amid Trump Policy Blitz

Republicans have always been very strong on stopping Russian expansion. Marco Rubio as Florida’s senator would make passionate speeches about the inhumanity and loss of democracy under the autocratic regimes of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. These countries, along with North Korea, China and Iran are the allies of Russia in the invasion of Ukraine. Will our Secretary of State be silenced by Trump?

Globalism and Radical Republicans

by Dave

Global problems need global solutions. NATO is a real solution to Russian expansion under Putin. Ukraine must not be the next victim to Russia’s invasion. Climate change is real. The hard evidence is many more extreme weather events. We’ve seen the melting of the polar caps and the rise in sea levels. Nuclear disarmament is critical to world peace. Again, global solutions can work. Unilateral actions or no actions will fail.

Global solutions are very difficult to accomplish. No one country will be given credit, if Putin gives up in Ukraine. It is not the Republican party in general that wants to cut aid to Ukraine, but a small group of radical Republicans, who put political gain ahead of what’s best for the country and the world.

With this small group of Republicans, there is no room for compromise. The opinion below, singles out Marjorie Taylor Greene, as the leader in the anti-Ukraine aid campaign. But, the driving force is a disengagement into world affairs, at a time where alliances are critical.

The best way to defeat Rep. Greene and others is at the polls in November.

See CNN link: Opinion: If Marjorie Taylor Greene wins on Ukraine aid, we’re headed for dangerous territory

Stay tuned,

Dave

What Rigged Elections look like

by Dave

Pictured above is an extremely brave woman. The photo is from the Associated Press. It may have been a photo from 2020, when massive protests broke out after the last rigged election. The flag with one red stripe, was used by Belarus before the only free and fair election in 1994.

Belarus declared independence from the Soviet Union in July 1990. Elections in 2001, 2006, 2010, 2015 and 2020 to reelect Alexander Lukashenko were completely fraudulent. This year will be on February 25, 2024 will be no different.

Per AP reporting: “President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus for nearly 30 years, charged that the West will try to use ‘new triggers to destabilize the society’ after the Feb. 25 vote.” So, the autocratic leader of Belarus has to point to the West for all the discontent.

As Lukashenko has brutally suppressed human rights, including taking thousands of political prisoners, western countries imposed economic sanctions. His centralized economy has been a disaster.

Political parties must be registered in Belarus. They must support Alexander Lukashenko. I particularly like the name of one political party, The Republican Party of Labor and Justice, which will continue the support the injustices under Lukashenko.

Alexander Lukashenko has systematically destroyed democracy and human rights in Belarus. He has remained in power with the support of Russia. They may have declared independence from Russia nearly 30 years ago, but they grow more dependent on favorable treatment from Putin’s Russia every year. (see links on economic links to Russia)

So Lukashenko will win the election, not because he is popular with the electorate but he has outlawed the opposition parties and suppressed free expression. If mass demonstrations occur following the 2024 elections, it will be bloody.

I applaud the very brave and patriotic lady lifting the flag in defiance of Alexander Lukashenko.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Links:

AP: As Belarus votes in tightly controlled elections, its leader accuses the West of fueling unrest

Wikipedia: Belarus

Center for Eastern Studies: A crisis rather than a disaster. The Belarusian economy a year into Russia’s war against Ukraine

Wikipedia: Human Rights in Belarus

US State Department Travel Advisory

(Level 4: Do not travel, US Citizens advised to leave as of 2022).

After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, is China going to invade Taiwan?

by Dave

There is this notion that Russia and China are following similar paths as they are both autocratic regimes. Autocracies are efficient and give the people of a country a sense of stability. In reality, it is a breakdown of independent institutions and laws designed to limit the powers of rulers.

An autocracy is a system of government where one person has absolute power. Vladimir Putin in Russia and Xi Jinping in China, rule their countries through fear and paranoia of the Western powers. It is often more extreme in Iran and North Korea, but they do not have the military capabilities of Russia and China. The unchecked authority of Putin is a key element leading to the decision to invasion of Ukraine.

It seemed a bit crazy when commentators were suddenly talking about the possible invasion of Taiwan by China, following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. But, the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, concluded this week was really about Xi Jinping emphasizing nationalism, security and formally adopting a more threatening policy towards Taiwan.

China watchers agree that Xi Jinping is more powerful than ever, with his handpicked new six member Politburo Standing Committee and his election to an unprecedented third term in office.

See link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20th_National_Congress_of_the_Chinese_Communist_Party

So, unfortunately the commentators arguing that Xi is likely to follow Putin’s foot steps seem to be right. Putin’s justifications of the Ukrainian invasion are basically (1) They are just taking back what has always belonged to Russia and (2) Ukraine was never really a country. Also, Russia ignores the UN condemnation of the invasion and the sanctions imposed by US and the EU.

Russia also claims that they were pushed into reclaiming Ukraine because of NATO’s expansion. Putin is good at concocting a rationale for the brutal invasion, and I have blogged previously that NATO acceptance of application of Eastern European break away countries, was consistent with NATO’s principles and an act of defense rather than aggression. Russia was never threatened by NATO expansion, but rather saw it as an ideal pretext to defend their actions.

Xi Jinping is obviously taking notice. He has tightened his grip on his party, and now is using paranoia of the US and Western nations, to convince the country that their security is at risk. It would be absurd to think that Ukraine posed a risk to Russia, or similarly Taiwan posed a risk to China. To justify an invasion, it is necessary to reduce Taiwan to a geological entity, known for centuries as the island of Formosa, and taken from the Chinese after World War II, as a refuge to the defeated army of Chiang Kai-Shek, and propped up by the US military,

Anyone who has studied Asian history would immediately know that Taiwan was under Japanese rule for 50 years from 1895 to 1945. Ironically, it is General Chiang Kai-Shek and his Chinese army who insisted that Taiwan was not only part of China, but that it was the provisional capital of China. From 1949 to the 1970s, the primary mission of the Taiwanese military was to “retake mainland China” through Project National Glory (Wikipedia). I’m not sure anyone believed this mission 50 years ago, and certainly the military today is strictly defensive.

Mainland China is the People’s Republic of China or PRC. The nation of Taiwan refers to itself as the Republic of China or ROC. Per Wikipedia:

The political and legal statuses of Taiwan are contentious issues. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) claims that Taiwan is Chinese territory and that itself has replaced the ROC government in 1949, becoming the sole legal government of China. The ROC, however, has its own currency, widely accepted passport, postage stamps, internet TLD, armed forces and constitution with an independently elected president. It has not formally renounced its claim to the mainland, but ROC government publications have increasingly downplayed this historical claim. Though it was a founding member of United Nations, the ROC now has neither official membership nor observer status in the organization.

Link: Wikipedia, Taiwan

Now, the US has tried to form a better relationship with China, for the obvious reason that China is a nuclear power with 18.5% of the world’s population. For this reason, we adopted the “One China” policy.

Link: What is the US “One China Policy”?

But we also want to continue strong ties to Taiwan and ensue their security. Administrations have tried to sidestep the question of ROC status. The question is whether ROC should pursue a path of unifying with China (one nation, two systems) in a manner similar to Hong Kong, through peaceful means or put more effort in achieving worldwide recognition as a separate nation, and formally abandoning its historical claim, that it is the legitimate government of China. I believe the latter is the more practical approach, even though China would see this as a threat.

The more belligerent Xi Jinping becomes, peaceful re-unification with two systems looks like a naïve, distant dream. The US has a very small military presence on Taiwan itself, but a large naval fleet close at hand. We don’t want a large military presence on Taiwan, because this could exacerbate an already tense situation. As Biden has remarked a number of times, if two nuclear powers are on the same battlefield, this can quickly become World War III.

Our US policy from Carter through Trump has been called “strategic ambiguity” towards the status of Taiwan. Biden’s recent comments on the US commitment defending Taiwan, appear to break with this policy.

Link: Biden leaves no doubt: ‘Strategic ambiguity’ toward Taiwan is dead

There will be some quiet back stepping, as we don’t want to cause Beijing to have a pretext to invade.

“Strategic ambiguity” never really could be a real policy, yet it endured for decades. It seems at odds with the fundamental aspects of good policy-making of clarifying areas of agreement, and narrowing issues of disagreement. It was the US trying to find a middle ground between ROC and RPC, when there was less and less they could agree on.

Xi is watching Putin’s war. He sees the successes and failures. And the most obvious failure is Russia’s inability to occupy and administer the eastern flank of Ukraine. The new Ukrainian counter-offensive, including the retaking of Kherson, means wars are most easily won in theory on maps rather than on the battlefield.

So, a Ukraine win will be a Taiwan win as well. Are we entering a new cold war, with both Russia and China? I really hope not, because so much progress has been made to resolve conflicts without going to war.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Putin’s Pushback: The one-two punch

by Dave

The news media covers the world 24/7. Sure, cable news has been saturated with Hurricane Ian for good reason. The destroyed homes, boats, roads and bridges both in the Florida and Cuba resembles war. But, rescue and recovery efforts are beginning right now.

There’s been some excellent reporting and commentary on the referendums which I call Putin’s one-two punch. Putin is attempting to legitimize the invasion by holding sham referendums as reported by CNBC news:

“The referendums, widely described as a “sham” by the international community, are seen as having created a pretext for Russia to annex the occupied Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in the south and pro-Russian, separatist “republics” in Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. The regions amount to around 15% of Ukraine’s territory.”

Putin’s one-two punch is designed to legitimize an invasion. From the beginning, Putin claimed Ukraine belonged to Russia. By holding these fake referendums, he will claim that the people of the region have decided to be part of Russia. So, Punch 1, The formal annexation and recognition of new boundaries of Russia that includes these regions. Punch 2: Putin will claim it is being attacked by NATO, as it arms Ukrainian fighters to invade Russia. It is all nonsense, but the lies are consistent.

See CNBC link: Fake referendums in occupied Ukraine set the stage for annexation — and immense danger for Ukraine

Please see the map in this link. The annexation redraws the eastern boundary of Ukraine all the way from Luhansk to Crimea. Of course, what Putin wants in Russia, Putin gets, so the legislature will rapidly approve of annexation. With the 1-2 Punch, the invaders become the victims of invasion. Poor mother Russia.

Nobody outside of Russia is really fooled. But Putin’s threat of introducing nuclear weapons is super-scary. The CNN post, provided below, is excellent, as it calls “Putin’s new land grab” a very dangerous step, in changing Russian borders, to suit Putin. I don’t like Congress to run foreign policy, but in this case I support the Graham-Blumenthal draft resolution, to cut off relations with any country which recognizes the annexed territories.

See CNN link: Putin’s new land grab is dangerous for Ukraine – and the world

Who would support annexation? North Korea, Chechnya and Belarus are likely. Iran? I just don’t think so. Syria – maybe. Just countries whose autocratic leaders have demonized the “Western Powers” as they loot and ruin their own countries.

Putin has done this before, to turn his invading army into simply protecting Russian nationals. Crimea and Chechnya are excellent examples. It is a tactic Hitler used in early stages of World War II, claiming his invading army was actually liberating the neighboring countries from oppressive regimes and protecting German citizens who lived there. So Putin is pulling out a tactic from Hitler’s playbook. Austria was the first country to be annexed by force in 1938, and it took seven years and millions of lives lost for it to regain its sovereignty.

This is far more than I intended to write. I wish I could say how all this ends, but every day, there are immense positives and negatives. I use the metaphor, 1-2 punch from boxing, because it is supposed to knock someone out quickly. Not going to happen in this case. Ukraine’s resistance to the invasion has been phenomenal. All I can say, at this point, no quick end is in sight.

Please read the excellent two articles.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Putin’s Plan

by Dave

There’s some very scary stuff out there. Some of this is relatively new. It is not Communism, nor Fascism, but autocracies without regard to international order and expansionary ambitions. Add in nuclear capabilities, and Russia poses a grave threat.

The Wagner Group is Putin’s secret weapon, and operates very much like a terrorist organization. More specifically, the Group looks like ISIS, which profits from captured territory and uses brutality as their weapon. In my last post, The Wagner Group was hired by the existing Central African Republic to bring the diamond mines under government control, but soon the Group was collaborating with the rebel groups to also profit from the diamond industry. So, putting the fox to guard the chicken pen, and you’ll end up without many chickens.

What goes around, comes around. That’s my first axiom. Chechnya might have seem a far off conflict in 2007 when Putin’s puppet was installed, by the name of Ramon Kadyron, in the Caucasian region, but the invasion of Ukraine, first in Crimea in 2014, then full scale invasion into Donbas in 2022 made crystal clear Putin’s game plan. Of course, prior to this, Putin had vastly increased the military strength of Russia, and their involvement in Syria was kind of a testing ground for further military interventions.

What threatens autocracies is basic civil liberties, including freedom of assembly and speech. The military is used to suppress freedoms. The judiciary system loses its independence. Belarus under President Lukashenko is a perfect example of a country in decline, due to the autocratic government. Putin had easy access to Ukraine through Belarus.

Putin’s Internet Research Agency (IRA) is another threat, and it is no question that they will use cyberattacks against its enemies, including the US and our western allies. Russia interfered in our elections in 2016, and they will do it again. It wasn’t headline news, but the “Rewards for Justice” program offer of 10 million dollars for information on Russia’s interference, as posted on July 28, 2022, is a very serious effort to deepen our understanding of this threat to us and our allies.

See link: Rewards for Justice

Next axiom. The problems with Putin are long term, and awareness instead of denial, is necessary. Also, I’ll add Biden’s axiom, which is when Russia and the US are on the same battlefield, you have World War III. I give Biden high marks on finally pulling out of Afghanistan and finding ways to keep Ukraine supplied with arms without putting boots on the ground.

During the campaign, Trump loudly proclaim that he would withdraw from Afghanistan and never did. He knew how terrible it was going to look, for the US to lose a war.

In February 2022, Russia was going to blitzkrieg Kyiv through a column of tanks entering through the northern front in Belarus. This fell apart.

I don’t know where or when the next large scale advance of Putin’s expansionary plans will be. Part of his strategy is to rebuild the Russian Federation, but it is not easily done. Belarus and Chechnya toe the line with Putin, to avoid invasion. Finland and Norway are now likely to be admitted to NATO. I congratulate Secretary of State Anthony Blinken as able to persuade Turkey not to block their admission.

Russia will continue to look at weaker or less stable countries in Africa, such as Central African Republic, Mali, Sudan, Madagascar and Libya as opportunities to intervene. These are also countries ripe for terrorists organizations. Certainly, Libya could easily be the next Syrian style proxy war involving both the US and Russia. Military forces from the US and France are assisting Niger from the threat of terrorist group, Boko Haram, which now affects Nigeria.

Keeping Ukraine alive is expensive. From Wikipedia, “On 28 April 2022, US President Joe Biden asked Congress for an additional $33 billion to assist Ukraine, including $20 billion to provide weapons to Ukraine. On 5 May, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that Ukraine had received more than $12 billion worth of weapons and financial aid from Western countries since the start of Russia’s invasion on 24 February. On 21 May 2022, the United States passed legislation providing $40 billion in new military and humanitarian foreign aid to Ukraine, marking a historically large commitment of funds.”

Putin’s push requires push back, and there is not better way right now, than by helping to defend Ukraine sovereignty. All Democrat senators voted to support aid to Ukraine. Per CNN:

“Eleven Republican senators voted against final passage of the bill: Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, John Boozman of Arkansas, Mike Braun of Indiana, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Mike Lee of Utah, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Marshall of Kansas, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama.” Aid to Ukraine has become political.

Link: CNN Senate votes to pass $40 billion aid to Ukraine,

Putin’s aggressive intervention policies must be met with resistance with a coordinated response from the US and our allies. It should never become political. I strongly support all the economic sanctions levied against Russia. The US and our European allies must do everything possible to strengthen emerging democracies around the world. Every Democrat in the Senate recognized the importance of Ukraine, and seem to have a better international perspective of the dangers of Putin. So, for my part, I’m supporting Democrats in the upcoming mid-term elections.

Stay tuned,

Dave