Support for Ukraine drives "identity crisis" among GOP: Politico

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
2 Jan 2023 14:59
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The American newspaper Politico reported that Trump's son sparked an "identity crisis" within the Republican Party amid discussions about "aid" to Ukraine.

Former US President Donald Trump (Reuters)

The son of former US President Donald Trump triggered an identity crisis within the Republican Party after criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a report by Politico.

"Zelensky is basically an ungrateful international welfare queen," Donald Trump Jr., the former president's eldest son, said on Twitter shortly before the Ukrainian leader flew to Washington.

Zelensky is basically an ungrateful international welfare queen. https://t.co/WclnckMoCj
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) December 21, 2022

His criticism, which came with a "dog whistle-shaped bow for his fellow conservatives," as Politico described it, was more of a serious critique of a significant foreign policy problem.

More importantly, according to the report, the invective served as a reminder of the churning debate within the Republican Party.

The Politico report argued that the GOP is facing an "identity crisis" that became more visible as the divide over where to draw the line regarding the Ukraine weapons supply decisions.

The report highlighted that "as long as Trump dominates the Republican Party, the conversation will revolve around his character, and all the scandals that come with it, rather than any political deliberations."

In advance of the next debate, a prominent group of war hawks led by the Vandenberg Coalition commissioned a large study earlier this month assessing voter sentiment on foreign policy topics.

The results of the poll conducted by the Republican polling firm Public Opinion Strategies, whose results have not yet been published, have been revealed by Politico noting that "Republicans continue to be more hawkish than Democrats on some big national security issues."

Furthermore, it was revealed that "the research found that Trump voters are much more supportive than Biden's supporters for increasing defense spending to confront China, dissatisfaction with the Iran nuclear deal for the Obama administration, and willingness to use force to prevent a nuclear Iran."