San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)

PENCE SAYS THERE’S NO ROOM IN THE GOP FOR ‘APOLOGISTS FOR PUTIN’

In a veiled dig at Trump, ex-vp urges support for Ukraine

- BY JOSH DAWSEY, ADELA SULIMAN & TIMOTHY BELLA Dawsey, Suliman and Bella write for The Washington Post.

Former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday night said there is no room in the Republican Party for “apologists for Putin” in an apparent swipe at former President Donald Trump.

In a speech to GOP donors in New Orleans, Pence referenced the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As the United States and internatio­nal community have responded with wide-ranging, extensive sanctions against Russia, Pence said now was not the time for conservati­ves to voice their support of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Ask yourself, where would our friends in Eastern Europe be today if they were not in NATO? Where would Russian tanks be today if NATO had not expanded the borders of freedom?” he said. “There is no room in this party for apologists for Putin.”

While Pence did not explicitly refer to the former president by name, Trump has been among the loudest, and only, Republican voices supporting Putin. Trump recently described Putin as “smart,” “savvy” and “a genius,” while insisting the attack on Ukraine never would have happened on his watch.

“The problem is not that Putin is smart — which of course he’s smart,” Trump said last week, “but the real problem is that our leaders are dumb. Dumb. So dumb.”

Pence’s comments come as fighting continues to play out across Ukraine. After evacuation efforts in Mariupol were halted because of what Ukrainian officials said was continued shelling from Russian forces, Putin on Saturday again denounced the widespread sanctions leveled against Russia from the internatio­nal community. He described the sanctions as like a “declaratio­n of war,” and said any continued pushback on the invasion from Ukrainian and world leaders would risk “the future of Ukrainian statehood.”

More than 1.2 million people have fled the fighting in Ukraine, and at least 331 civilians have been killed, according to U.N. agencies. But researcher­s caution that the actual toll is probably higher because it is difficult and often dangerous to count the dead during war.

GOP leaders have largely condemned Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, even as Republican leaders such as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have described the Russian president as a “talented statesman” with “lots of gifts.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., was sharply criticized by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle this past week after suggesting the “only way” to end the crisis in Ukraine is for Russians to assassinat­e Putin.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Graham’s comments reflected a “hysterical, extreme pressure of a Russophobi­c outburst” at a time of such global tension.

The White House also rejected Graham’s call for an assassinat­ion.

“That is not the position of the United States government and certainly not a statement you’d hear from come from the mouth of anybody working in this administra­tion,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at a daily briefing on Friday. Members of Congress also criticized Graham’s tweets as reckless, including Republican­s such as Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.

The conservati­ve shift on Russia has also come on Fox News, where host Tucker Carlson has changed his tone on Putin after initially downplayin­g the conflict and asking Americans why they hated the Russian president.

Despite his indirect reference to Trump, Pence echoed the former president and cast blame on the Biden administra­tion’s handling of the Ukraine crisis.

“It’s no coincidenc­e that Russia waited until 2022 to invade Ukraine,” Pence said.

“Weakness arouses evil, and the magnitude of evil sweeping across Ukraine speaks volumes about this president.”

He praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for acting courageous­ly and said Putin “only understand­s strength.” Pence also urged Republican­s to support humanitari­an and refugee aid efforts.

Discussing future elections, Pence said Republican­s needed to move past the 2020 election loss. Trump has continued to falsely claim that Pence had the authority to overturn the 2020 election during Congress’s counting of Electoral College votes, which he did not. Such false claims helped fuel the “Hang Mike Pence!” chant that erupted among the protrump mob at the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

“My fellow Republican­s, we can only win if we are united around an optimistic vision for the future based on our highest values,” he said. “We cannot win by fighting yesterday’s battles, or by re-litigating the past.”

 ?? MANUEL BALCE CENETA AP FILE ?? Mike Pence on Friday told Republican­s “there is no room in this party for apologists for Putin.”
MANUEL BALCE CENETA AP FILE Mike Pence on Friday told Republican­s “there is no room in this party for apologists for Putin.”

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