Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) is not impressed by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)… to put it lightly. Axios revealed this week that Hawley was pushing for the Biden administration to end U.S. support for eventually bringing Ukraine into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) — support which has been in place since at least the era of Republican President George W. Bush. Hawley is pushing this line of argument while Ukraine is facing the apparent threat of further Russian military action; recently, Russian leaders have amassed a substantial military presence on the border with Ukraine, raising global fears of imminent conflict — something that a top Russian official did not appear to rule out in recent remarks.
Sen. Josh Hawley Reportedly Questions U.S. Support For Ukraine’s NATO Membership, Intensifying Far-Right Downplaying Of Russian Aggression https://t.co/q4GuvZVYzJ pic.twitter.com/Aa6lvDMleJ
— Forbes (@Forbes) February 2, 2022
That official, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, said that “if it depends on the Russian Federation, then there will be no war,” but he added that he didn’t “rule out that someone would like to provoke military action [around Ukraine],” as NBC reports. Hawley argued that the U.S. should withhold support for Ukraine eventually joining NATO in order to allow the U.S. to more easily focus certain resources on countering threats from China, and although that specific point might differ from the arguments presented by other prominent conservatives like Fox host Tucker Carlson, the broad notion of essentially keeping Ukraine at a distance mirrors what some others in Hawley’s corner have been saying. Kinzinger — who’s actually himself a member of the military — commented as follows:
‘I hate to be so personal, but Hawley is one of the worst human beings, and a [self-aggrandizing] con artist. When Trump goes down I certainly hope this evil will be layed in the open for all to see, and be ashamed of.’
I hate to be so personal, but Hawley is one of the worst human beings, and a self egrandizing con artist. When Trump goes down I certainly hope this evil will be layed in the open for all to see, and be ashamed of. https://t.co/3LirLgeuMz
— Adam Kinzinger (@AdamKinzinger) February 2, 2022
Kinzinger’s assessment of the Missouri Senator certainly seems on-point. Hawley was one of the leaders of the push in Congress to block the certification of Biden’s presidential election victory, and despite this effort helping inspire an attack on the Capitol by rioters who were also trying to stop Biden’s win from being confirmed, Hawley has arrogantly stuck by his position, showing no apparent remorse. Meanwhile, the idea that supporting Ukraine over Russia in some form isn’t worth pursuing as intently as would be the norm is gaining disturbing levels of support among Republicans. Discussing U.S. support for Ukraine eventually joining NATO, Tucker Carlson recently asked his viewers to “imagine if Mexico fell under the direct military control of China,” adding: “We would see that as a threat, of course. That’s how Russia views NATO control of Ukraine. Why wouldn’t they?” Besides the fact that he’s essentially stumping for a dictator, NATO doesn’t “control” its members.
We are not protecting our democracy if we let the Senators who enabled January 6 continue serving in the Senate as though it’s business as usual. Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley need to resign or be expelled.
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) January 30, 2022
Ret. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman — who is, in fact, an expert on Ukraine-related matters, having worked on such issues while previously serving as part of the National Security Council — has credited divisions such as those fostered by Carlson (and Hawley) with helping Putin believe that he has an opening for action in relation to Ukraine. As Vindman recently put it, the timing of Putin’s latest moves is “mainly because of a sense of opportunity, a sense of weakness within the United States,” pointedly observing: “The hyper-polarization that Trump continues to nourish in the United States helps… [Putin] has major talking heads on Fox News, like Tucker Carlson, pandering to his interests, drawing false equivalencies between the U.S. and Russia. Really kind of fanboying over authoritarianism.”
Hawley also needs a good grilling by the Special House Committee and by DOJ https://t.co/PDFphJgJ6D
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) January 29, 2022