Putin invasion deepens Republican divide

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has exposed a schism in the Republican party between “hawks” who condemn Vladimir Putin and "America first” followers who express admiration for the strongman.

- David Smith

But what has united the two wings so far is an opportunity to cast Joe Biden as weak and paying the price of failure in Afghanistan.

The split was evident last week as Republicans in Washington condemned Putin as a war criminal” while many grassroots conservatives at a conference in Florida agreed with former President Donald Trump that the Russian autocrat is “savvy”.

Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, described Putin as a thug” and criticised Biden for being too slow to impose tough sanctions. Sadly, deterrence after the fact is not deterrence at all, he said.

Senator Lindsey Graham, who is both a Trump ally and traditional hawk, added:“The Biden administration continues to misread the moment We should move ahead forcefully against Putin, a war criminal, and demand our allies join us.”

Even Kevin McCarthy, the minority leader in the House of Representatives who is typically loyal to Trump, focused his statement on Putin's invasion as reckless and evil” and echoed Biden by saying the Russian president must be held accountable”.