Early on Monday, President Obama announced that sanctions would be imposed in response to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. The sanctions announced were economic in nature and meant to target specific individuals that are responsible for pushing forward the illegal referendum in Crimea. This is obviously the first step of ongoing economic sanctions that will be directed at Russia if it continues interfering with the sovereignty of Ukraine. The President also wants to work with member nations of the European Union and G-7 on other diplomatic solutions.
It didn’t take long before you-know-who found a television camera so he could criticize the President. MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell had Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) on her show Monday and gave him the opportunity to call the President ‘weak’ and ‘timid.’ Below is video of McCain speaking with Mitchell:
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During the interview, McCain constantly referred to the President’s timidity and weakness, and was angry that the President didn’t explicitly state on Monday that he was going to send military assistance to Ukraine. McCain said that the United States needs to send over military advisers to Kiev and start training troops over there. He also feels that the US needs to send over weaponry and military equipment. While he didn’t explicitly state it, McCain would really like for the US to commit to sending troops over to Ukraine.
Once again, this is just McCain shaking his fist at something the President did and getting angry about it. He’s using this crisis to undercut the President at every possible opportunity, just waiting for the President to make a statement or take action so he can immediately find a camera and complain about it. It is just so painfully predictable.
During the moments when McCain can’t find a news show that will have him on right away, he’s gone to Twitter to express his views. On Monday, those tweets included these gems:
Incredibly Pres Obama’s stmt didn’t mention military assistance to #Ukraine, a sovereign nation that’s been invaded by #Russia
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) March 17, 2014
Putin obviously wasn’t threatened by sanction of seven #Russian officials – recognizes #Crimea as sovereign, independent state…
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) March 17, 2014
The thing is, McCain has gone back and forth many times on his feelings regarding this crisis. Just this past Sunday, he appeared on CNN’s State of the Union (big surprise he was on a Sunday show) and basically agreed with the President’s positions on how best to handle the situation in Ukraine. Of course, he couldn’t come out and SAY that. However, everything he said essentially echoed the President’s stance.
That is probably why White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, when told by reporters that McCain called the President ‘timid’ on Monday, gave the following response:
“I didn’t see Senator McCain’s comments. I have noted that they have fluctuated somewhat in terms of his evaluation of the President’s performance every several days. The President’s focused on making sure that we support the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian people.”
Carney also mentioned that military assistance wasn’t off the table when it came to Ukraine, but that the focus was on the start of sanctions against Russia as well as providing financial assistance to Ukraine. Currently, a $1 billion aid package to Ukraine is waiting on Congressional approval. The plan is not to get the United States involved in a military action that could lead into a confrontation with Russia that could have serious worldwide repercussions.
McCain’s current state of mind is clouded by two things. One, he is an extreme hawk who misses the Cold War and still has a 1980’s attitude regarding foreign policy. Two, he just can’t get over the 2008 election. It angers him that Barack Obama is now a two-term President. Since he is still in the Senate, he is going to use every opportunity he can to sabotage President Obama. You know, because ‘Country First.’
Justin Baragona is the Managing Editor at Politicus Sports as well as Senior Editor at PoliticusUSA. He was a political writer for 411Mania.com before joining PoliticusUSA. Politically, Justin considers himself a liberal but also a realist and pragmatist. Currently, Justin lives in St. Louis, MO and is married. Besides writing, he also runs his own business after spending a number of years in the corporate world. You can follow Justin on Twitter either with his personal handle (@justinbaragona) or the Sports site’s (@PoliticusSports).
