‘We must stand by all our democratic allies,” Ronald Reagan declared during his 1985 State of the Union address. “And we must not break faith with those who are risking their lives . . . to defy Soviet-supported aggression and secure rights which have been ours from birth.” As Reagan saw it, America had both a moral and a strategic imperative to aid free peoples in resisting authoritarian aggression, as Ukraine is now. “If there had been firmer support for that principle some 45 years ago,” the president observed during his famous 1982 Westminster speech, “perhaps our generation wouldn’t have suffered the bloodletting of World War II.”
Unfortunately, some Republicans seem to have forgotten this wisdom. After initially enjoying bipartisan support, Ukraine aid has met with increasing skepticism from GOP voters and their representatives in Congress. For months, some congressional Republicans have stymied efforts to pass Ukraine funding for the current fiscal year. This inaction imperils both Ukraine’s future and vital U.S. interests. It must end now.
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