Republicans have turned the war in Ukraine into another partisan cudgel against President Joe Biden, and one conservative columnist is sick of their posturing.
The Biden administration and the European Union moved swiftly to sanction and isolate Russia and its economy, even as Republicans grumbled the president wasn't doing enough to aid Ukraine, and Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin examined their complaints.
"Despite Republicans’ whining, the tightly coordinated E.U. and U.S. sanctions are bringing Russia’s economy to its knees," Rubin wrote. "The ruble hits a new low practically every day, having lost as of Monday more than 80 percent of its value against the dollar ... Things are so awful, Russians are now pouring out of the country, and oligarchs are grumbling."
Republicans have now decided the U.S. must ban Russian oil imports, although domestic consumption is a drop in the bucket compared to what European markets rely on for fuel, and are clamoring for faster deployment of weapons to Ukraine -- which has been happening quickly since Vladimir Putin launched the invasion.
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"Might it be that Biden is doing everything humanly possible short of starting World War III to help Ukraine, and Republicans have no real basis for complaint?" Rubin wrote.
"Most Republicans, certainly the right-wing pundits in their media bubble, find it impossible even in times of war to put aside any perceived partisan advantage," she concluded. "In a war critical for the defense of democracy, they’ll keep on searching for something to criticize. So don’t expect the disingenuous whining to stop."
