DeSantis stuns establishment with position close to Trump on Ukraine

Joe Biden delivers a joint statement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Monday, Feb. 20, 2023, at the Mariyinskyy Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Official White House photo by Adam Schultz)

President Trump is calling for peace in Europe and regime change here in the United States.

His comments were part of the responses obtained by Fox News' Tucker Carlson when he asked all of the GOP presidential hopefuls for their perspectives on Ukraine.

The Gateway Pundit reported that Nikki Haley, John Bolton, Mike Pompeo, Asa Hutchison and Chris Sununu chose not to respond.

But those who did included Trump, former Vice President Mike Pence, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Gov. Kristi Noem, Greg Abbott, Sen. Tim Scott, former Gov. Chris Christie and Ohio businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.

The report explained, "President Trump called for peace in Europe (but not at any price) and for regime change at home. Pence supports (but no blank check) Ukraine so as to stop Russia’s ambitions and set an example for China. DeSantis stunned the establishment by spelling out a position close to Trump’s, saying of the U.S. national interest, 'a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them.'"

Trump openly blamed the weakness of Joe Biden for the Ukraine turmoil.

"The sad fact is that, due to a new lack of respect for the U.S., caused at least partially by our incompetently handled pullout from Afghanistan, and a very poor choice of words by Biden in explaining U.S. requests and intentions (Biden’s first statement was that Russia could have some of Ukraine, no problem!), the bloody and expensive assault began, and continues to this day," he said.

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He then said it needs to end.

"Start by telling Europe that they must pay at least equal to what the U.S. is paying to help Ukraine. They must also pay us, retroactively, the difference. At a staggering 125 billion dollars, we are paying 4 to 5 times more, and this fight is far more important for Europe than it is for the U.S. Next, tell Ukraine that there will be little more money coming from us, UNLESS RUSSIA CONTINUES TO PROSECUTE THE WAR."

He said then a deal needs to be worked out.

It was a war "that never should have started in the first place," he said.

He said "regime change" in the United States is what is needed.

"The Biden administration are the ones who got us into this mess."

DeSantis said the U.S. priorities do not include "becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia."

"The Biden administration’s virtual 'blank check' funding of this conflict for 'as long as it takes,' without any defined objectives or accountability, distracts from our country’s most pressing challenges," he said.

He also warned "regime change" in Russia would increase the danger and not stop the war.

Nor would it, he said, "produce a pro-American, Madisonian constitutionalist in the Kremlin. History indicates that Putin’s successor, in this hypothetical, would likely be even more ruthless. The costs to achieve such a dubious outcome could become astronomical."

Links to a long list of other responses was posted online by the Gateway Pundit.

We asked every potential 2024 GOP presidential candidate to answer six key questions on the war in Ukraine. As promised, their full responses are below. pic.twitter.com/tjcM4w54cR

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) March 14, 2023

Ron DeSantis calls the Ukraine war a "territorial dispute." In fact, it is an attempt by Russia to obliterate the Ukrainian nation and re-subjugate it -- to drag it back into an empire ruled by the Kremlin. DeSantis betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of a crucial issue.

— Jay Nordlinger (@jaynordlinger) March 14, 2023

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