What does U.S. Rep. Mike McCaul (R-Texas) have in common with Joe Biden?
Well, it seems, both men are fond of the accusation of “Russian disinformation.”
This isn’t to say that “Russian disinformation” doesn’t exist — it’s just that the terms has become well-worn by some Republicans and Biden Democrats alike to address anyone who disagrees on policy or politics.
This week, for example, McCaul, the chair of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, warned that Russian disinformation has found its way into the House Republican Caucus.
He was, no doubt, talking about recent pushback among Republicans for unfettered funding of Ukraine.
Would Russia like to see the U.S. no longer fund Ukraine? Of course.
But that doesn’t mean honest policy questions about U.S. taxpayer funding of Ukraine is in any way “Russian disinformation” or propaganda.
Republicans such as Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) and U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), for instance, having been raising issues about House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) push for a Ukraine funding bill, in part, because of Ukraine’s own actions.
For example, Ukraine last week cancelled its elections.
Ukraine was recently ranked one of the most corrupt countries in in the world (and, yes, Russia was also on that list).
Ukraine is also jailing Christian priests and shutting down churches:
Ep. 34 Of all of Biden’s crimes, backing the Ukrainian government as it throws priests in jail may be the most revealing. pic.twitter.com/ZCVV4uPzs9
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) October 26, 2023
Russia didn’t do any of those things. Ukraine did.
Asking legitimate policy decisions regarding U.S. taxpayer funding of Ukraine, based on those concerns alone, does not mean one is pro-Russia or pro-Putin.
But McCaul, like Biden, believes that any questioning of U.S. policy on Ukraine shall not be questioned without today’s well-worn “Scarlett Letter” accusation of “Russian disinformation.”
He’s likely to continue throwing around that accusation as a promised U.S. House vote on Ukraine funding draws nearer — especially since Speaker Johnson might be willing to “risk his Speakership” over the vote.