'Perfect Russian asset': JD Vance pummeled for promoting 'Putin’s propaganda'

During a town hall Thursday, Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance suggested that Russia is not the “bad guy” in its illegal war of choice against the sovereign nation of Ukraine, leading critics including national security experts to accuse him of promoting Vladimir Putin’s talking points.

“I think that the seeds of peace and Russia and Ukraine come from recognizing that is unfortunate as it is, and Russia shouldn’t have invaded Ukraine in the first place,” Vance told an self-identified undecided voter, according to the NewsNation transcript. “Both the Russians and the Ukrainians are exhausted. They’re both struggling to find men, because primarily men in those countries that are fighting the war. But they’re struggling to find women too. They’re struggling to get the equipment necessary to send to the front lines.”

“Their economies are exhausted. Whole parts of their country have been destroyed. Both of these parties want this war to end.”

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“And I think unfortunately, you’ve got a lot of American leaders who like to beat their chest and say, ‘Well, this is the good guy and that’s the bad guy.’ Look, yes, Russia should not have invaded Ukraine, but we are where we are, and what’s in the best interest of America, and what I believe is in the best interest of Ukraine and Russia is for the killing to stop.”

Olivia Troye, who has an extensive national security résumé, including as Vice President Mike Pence’s Homeland Security and Counterterrorism advisor, blasted Senator Vance:

“JD Vance: the perfect Russian asset, delivering Putin’s propaganda straight to the American people. At a time when democracy needs defending, Vance is more interested in spreading Moscow’s talking points than standing up for American values.”

The Atlantic’s David Frum, who served as speechwriter and special assistant to President George W. Bush, wrote of Senator Vance, “This man was put on a national ticket at the behest of a cabal of billionaires with sinister secret obligations to the dictators of Russia and China.”

Foreign policy, national security, and political affairs analyst and commentator David Rothkopf warned, “This is what the (not-so-soft) pitch for Putin looks like. Make no mistake. Vance may be weird and inexperienced [but] he is also a threat. This man could very easily succeed Trump (sooner than anyone expects) as president.”

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Amy McGrath, a retired Marine combat fighter pilot who served for two decades and has a huge defense résumé, commented: “If we had JD Vance back in 1987, the line would be, ‘Mr. Gorbachev, this wall looks really beautiful.'”

Professor of history and biographer Lee Annis added: “Unconscionable statement! Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Jerry Ford and especially Ronald Reagan would be horrified by this TRULY pathetic excuse for the ‘evil empire’ Reagan so nobly and loudly condemned.”

Marc Polymeropoulos, who served at CIA for more than a quarter-century, remarked: “There actually is a good guy and a bad guy re Ukraine and Russia. Good god. This is the GOP position? My GOP ntl security friends, u good with this?”

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