Of the eight Republican presidential candidates on Wednesday’s debate stage, only entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy argued against the United States providing additional funding to Ukraine. Like Ramaswamy – and unlike the rest of the GOP candidates – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also questioned sending additional funding to Ukraine, but said such a decision would be “contingent” on other factors.
During the first 2024 Republican primary debate, co-host Brett Baier asked the candidates if they would “support the increase of more funding to Ukraine.”
Ramaswamy separated himself from the rest of the Republican field, stating definitively that he “would not [support an increase in funding to Ukraine].”
“I think that this is disastrous that we are protecting against an invasion across somebody else’s border when we should use those same military resources to prevent across the invasion of our own southern border here in the United States of America,” the entrepreneur added.
Ramaswamy warned that by isolating Russia and getting heavily entangled in the war in Ukraine, the United States is “driving Russia further into China’s hands.” He suggested that the growing alliance between Russia and China is the “single greatest threat” currently facing the United States.
Ramaswamy also blasted his Republican opponents for allegedly showing more support for the people of Ukraine than for the American people.
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“I find it offensive that we have professional politicians on the stage that will make a pilgrimage to Kyiv, to their Pope Zelensky, without doing the same thing for people in Maui or the south side of Chicago or Kensington,” he said.
Ramaswamy urged lawmakers to “put the interests of Americans first,” prioritize the security of the southern border over Ukraine’s border and “project strength by making America strong at home.”
Unlike Ramaswamy, DeSantis argued U.S. funding should be contingent on Europe’s financial support for the war-torn nation.
“Europe needs to step up,” DeSantis said. “I would have them step up and do their job. Our support should be contingent on them doing it.”
