Where's Ronald Reagan when you really need him, Ukraine edition

It's often thought that Joe Biden and Donald Trump are opposites when it comes to Ukraine. Bill McGurn took the time to explain how they're similar in terms of Ukraine. He lays out the similarities in his latest column. (Where's Ronald Reagan when we really need him?)

In his column, McGurn wrote "The dominant narrative today holds that Joe Biden and Donald Trump are opposites on Ukraine. The president supports the Senate bill that includes about $60 billion for Kyiv, mostly in military aid. The former president attacks it, and his influence among House Republicans is why Speaker Mike Johnson is reluctant to bring it to the floor for a vote."

McGurn then wrote "But when it comes to the failure to spell out a strategic argument, the two are one. As a result, the military-aid package has largely been fought over issues unrelated to Ukraine, such as funding for border security. Meanwhile, Democrats sound like hawks, Republicans sound like doves, and U.S. policy slides into strategic incoherence."

Mike Johnson doesn't have much wiggle room on Ukraine aid. What makes things tricky is that he has a dovish presidential nominee who seems more interested in cutting deals with enemies than helping allies win:

Trump's argument is that Putin wouldn't have invaded Ukraine had he been president. While that's likely true, that's irrelevant at this point. Just like Reagan inherited a mess from Carter in 1981, Trump will inherit a mess if he wins this November. Should he be satisfied with negotiating a stalemate? Should he insist on defeating Putin's Russia?

There was a time when the U.S. enjoyed winning wars. While it's true that President Reagan negotiated with Gorbachev, he did that only until the Soviet Union collapsed. Let's be clear about this. Putin's Russia is definitely defeatable. I recall a briefing from the Pentagon where the briefing general said that the Russian T-72 tanks couldn't go offroad because the fields were too muddy in the spring. A military that can't get its tanks to maneuver offroad isn't a superpower. That's a totally defeatable military.

Add to that the fact that most of the soldiers that initially invaded Ukraine were conscripts with virtually no training. That isn't a superpower. That's a military that should've been disdpatched quickly. FYI- This is the type of leader you enthusiastically support:

"I don't need a ride. I need more ammunition." That's a battlecry to rally around. We need to help Ukraine defeat Putin's Russia. That way, we don't have to worry about them for the next 20+ years. That's the opposite of Biden's prposed 20-year war.

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