The Republicans have become the party of Russia. This makes me sick.

Of all the changes that have occurred in our politics since the rise of
Donald Trump, the most gut-wrenching for me personally is to see the
Republican Party transformed into the Kremlin�s �useful idiots.� As a
young refugee from the Soviet Union growing up in Southern California in
the 1980s, I was attracted to the GOP because it was the party of moral
clarity � the party willing to stand up to the �evil empire.� How far we
have come � in the wrong direction.
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Today, we have a Republican president who, while reluctantly acceding to
sanctions against Russia, incessantly praises its dictator, Vladimir Putin
(�a terrific person�); tries to bring Putin back to the Group of Seven;
conceals the details of their meetings; undermines Ukraine, a victim of
Russian aggression, by harping on its corruption while ignoring Russia�s
own kleptocracy; allows the Russians to take possession of U.S. bases in
Syria; and propagates Russian propaganda blaming Ukraine for 2016 election
interference. Trump is joined in spreading Russian disinformation by his
secretary of state and other supporters, such as Rep. Devin Nunes (R-
Calif.) and Sen. John Neely Kennedy (R-La.), even though the U.S.
intelligence community has exposed claims of Ukrainian election
interference as a �fictional narrative.�

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Fox News host Tucker Carlson, one of the biggest stars on the president�s
favorite television network and an informal adviser to the president, goes
even further in expressing his admiration for Russia. Last week, he said:
�Why do I care what is going on in the conflict between Ukraine and
Russia?! And I�m serious. Why do I care? Why shouldn�t I root for Russia?
Which I am.� Carlson claimed to be joking. But then this week, he said:
�We should probably take the side of Russia if we have to choose between
Russia and Ukraine. That�s my view.�
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How did we get to the point where a �conservative� TV star openly sides
with an anti-American dictatorship over a pro-American democracy? Most,
but not all, of the blame lies with Trump. His affinity for Russia is as
deep as it is mysterious. Has he been compromised by Russian intelligence?
Is he financially dependent on Russian business partners? Or does he
simply admire the way that Putin has destroyed Russian democracy? We still
don�t know, because special counsel Robert S. Mueller III did not release
any findings from the FBI�s counterintelligence investigation.

But while Trump�s motives remain murky, his admiration for Russia has been
clear from the start. Almost exactly four years ago � on Dec. 18, 2015 �
Trump was asked by MSNBC�s Joe Scarborough about Putin�s habit of killing
journalists and invading neighboring countries. Trump defended Putin as �a
leader, unlike what we have in this country,� and said, �Our country does
plenty of killing, too, Joe.�
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Republicans knew this but nominated Trump anyway. Then, during the summer
of 2016, came the Russian hack of the Democratic National Committee, a
social media blitz, and other actions designed to change the outcome of
the U.S. election. Trump made full use of the stolen DNC emails and he
invited Russian intelligence to hack Hillary Clinton�s emails, too
(�Russia, if you�re listening�). He also hired a campaign chairman, Paul
Manafort, who had a long history of corrupt dealings with Russian
oligarchs, and gutted the language concerning Russia in the Republican
platform.

The Republican Party could not have cared less. Senate Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) refused to join the Obama administration in
condemning Russia�s attack on our election. The GOP thus became complicit
in Russian election interference.

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In for a kopek, in for a ruble: The Republicans continued defending Trump
even after it emerged that he had tried to build a Trump Tower in Moscow
while running for president and that members of his campaign�s high
command had met with Russian emissaries promising dirt on Clinton.
Republicans were not even fazed when Trump fired FBI Director James B.
Comey in May 2017 to stop the investigation of �this Russia thing,� or
when in July 2018 he was utterly supine before Putin in Helsinki.

While Republicans are primarily motivated by Trump toadyism, there is also
an element of ideological affinity for Russia. While all Republicans were
staunchly opposed to the �godless� Soviet regime, some of them admire
Putin�s fascist regime, which combines crony capitalism with ultra-
nationalism. Putin has marketed himself to credulous conservatives as a
champion of Christianity, traditional values and the white race. As my
Post colleague Christian Caryl noted, this propaganda has no basis in
fact: To take but two examples, Russia has much stricter gun control laws
than the United States and a much higher rate of abortion. But Republican
Russophilia is so strong that a Russian agent had no difficulty in
infiltrating the National Rifle Association. A high-level NRA delegation
visited Moscow in 2015 and a group of Republican lawmakers visited Moscow
on the Fourth of July 2018.

The percentage of Republicans who view Russia as an ally has nearly
doubled since Trump took office. The party�s transformation into a Russian
lickspittle makes me sick; �GOP� might as well stand for �Gang of Putin.�

That so many Republicans are just fine with it is yet another sign of how
a once-grand party has lost its way. By turning into apologists and
advocates for a Russian dictator, the Republican Party has become all that
it once despised.