Trump's Ukraine about-face puts GOP hawks in the hot seat

For years, the United States has been at the forefront of a global effort to bolster Ukraine's ongoing defense against a Russian invasion effort that has threatened the stability of Eastern Europe. Since the reelection of President Donald Trump, however, that vector of support has been called into terminal question.

Trump has continued his global overtures to Russian President Vladimir Putin while falsely labeling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a "dictator without elections." As a result, Trump's pivot away from America's historically adversarial stance toward Russia has roiled the traditionally hawkish members of his own party, who have spent decades operating under a geopolitical paradigm that seems to be rapidly losing relevance. As representatives for the Trump and Putin administrations prepare to discuss the future of Ukraine without any Ukrainian input, Republican lawmakers find themselves in an awkward political crossfire.

A 'widening gap' within the GOP

While Republicans on Capitol Hill have been "split" over Trump's broadsides against Ukraine and his increasingly cozy relationship with Russia, their public pushback has been "muted," The Washington Post said — a dynamic that underscores the party's "shifting stance on Russia's invasion." While once "strongly behind" Ukraine, support among Senate Republicans in particular has "eroded considerably" under Trump.

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While some Republicans have "expressed dismay" at Trump's discrete statements and posturing, the party has yet to mount a "concerted effort to challenge him" on the merits of those actions, particularly on the part of those lawmakers who play "pivotal roles in overseeing military and foreign policy in Congress," said The New York Times. Although some have said they "do not agree" with Trump's position, "most have done so taking pains not to criticize the president" himself.

Despite a "widening gap" between the administration and the GOP's "defense wing," Republicans have not been ready to "break completely" with the president, Politico said. Even among those who have "expressed dismay" at Trump's comments, such as "regular Republican dissenter" Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), the critiques "will not translate into any tangible attempt to redirect Trump's foreign policy," said the BBC.

Giving Trump 'latitude for now'

Many Republican lawmakers have tempered their critiques of Trump's pivot on American support for Ukraine. This a reflection of the "reality" that there is "little appetite for approving any more foreign aid" for Ukraine within the GOP-held legislature, said NPR. And peppered throughout those critiques is the repeated theme that Trump's comments are part of a broader operating plan.

Trump may be "factually wrong" in calling Zelenskyy a "dictator," Sen. Kevin Kramer (R-N.D.) said. But while Kramer admitted he doesn't know Trump's "motive" behind the remarks, "as a negotiator, he's always positioning and he's in a negotiating mood these days." While Putin is "clearly responsible" for the war in Ukraine, Trump has used some "fairly successful, aggressive negotiating tactics in the past," said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). "So I'll give him latitude for now." Trump is "working to achieve" a "peaceful outcome" in and for Ukraine, said Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.). "Right now you've got to give them some space."