Democratic Leader Jeffries: Republican Party’s ‘pro-Putin faction’ has delayed aid to Ukraine

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the United States must continue to support Ukraine to prevent a wider war, and he blamed the delay in aid in the fight against Russia on a “pro-Putin faction” within the Republican Party.

“We can’t let Ukraine go down, because if we do, there’s a good chance America will have to enter the conflict – not just with our money, but with our military and our military,” Jeffries said in an interview with Norah. O’Donnell for 60 minutes.

Jeffries explained that he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin was seeking to recreate the Soviet Union and, in doing so, would threaten NATO allies. Putin’s invasion of neighboring Georgia did not stop there, Jeffries stressed, nor did his takeover of Crimea in eastern Ukraine.

“Are we to believe that in the face of this type of constant aggression, if we allow Vladimir Putin to succeed in Ukraine, he will only stop in Ukraine? Of course not,” Jeffries said.

Last month, Congress approved a long-awaited bill to provide $61 billion in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. It is the first major aid package since December 2022, and comes after months of fighting and gridlock in Congress, led by Republicans divided over foreign aid to Ukraine.

“There is a growing pro-Putin faction within the Republican Party that does not want to support Ukraine and believes, for some reason, that Russia is not an enemy of the United States of America,” said Jeffries.

He is not alone in this assessment. He pointed to remarks last month by Rep. Michael McCaul, Republican chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Mike Turner, Republican chairman of the Intelligence Committee, who both said in interviews that Russian propaganda had infiltrated their party.

In the House, Jeffries claimed Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene was leading support for Russia.

“Check the file,” he said. “It’s the reality of who she is, what she says and her belief system.”

In the Senate, 15 Republicans voted against the bill providing more aid to Ukraine, including Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, who last month wrote an opinion piece saying Ukraine was lacking manpower and military might to prevail – and that American support was insufficient. insufficient to change it.

In his interview with 60 Minutes, Jeffries responded to Vance’s comment, highlighting the Ukrainian military’s ability to hold off Russian forces for more than two years.

“It’s been a strategic success, by any definition,” Jeffries said. “And so those who want to convince the American people that the Ukrainian effort was a failure are promoting Vladimir Putin propaganda because the facts say the exact opposite, which is why it is important for us to finish the job .It’s a Churchill or Chamberlain moment.”

The video above was produced by Brit McCandless Farmer and edited by Scott Rosann.