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Zelenskyy Takes his Message to Washington

Zelenskyy Takes his Message to Washington

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy left his war-torn nation to come to Washington to address Congress. 

It was a historical moment, of course.  Many observers noted the similarities between the Zelenskyy visit and the World War II Christmas time visit by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.  Both Zelenskyy and Churchill were in America to plead for military aid and support in their war with an evil empire builder.

In both cases, the United States was already a major supplier of military weapons and humanitarian aid. A major difference was that at the time of Churchill’s visit, America had already been attacked by Japan at Pearl Harbor and was in a state of war with Tokyo.   Churchill was concerned that President Roosevelt would focus on Japan to the detriment of the war in Europe.

Zelenskyy’s concern is that the United States – and NATO – will gradually lose the will to win – meaning failing to provide the necessary resources to win.  There is one irrefutable fact.  Ukraine cannot win a war of attrition without the massive ongoing support of the world democracies.  While with the limited support the west has given – a lot but still insufficient – the Ukraine military has been able to thwart Putin’s plan for a swift victory over all of Ukraine — and have pushed back some Russian advances in the east and south.  That does not mean that Ukraine is poised to win the war.

General James Spider Marks – and virtually every other media general – have been perfectly clear.  To win the war, Ukraine will need a lot more weaponry – and a lot more powerful weapons.  We have still denied Ukraine’s request for the fighter jets sitting in NATO.  We have provided Patriot missiles with an 80-mile range, but not those with a 150-mile range.

As Marks put it, the Biden administration is still in a reactive mode – not a proactive mode.  To me that sounds like what I have been saying since the start of the War – Biden is offering too little, too late.

Yes, I have heard Zelenskyy praising the United States for all that we are doing.  What else could he say to the people in Washington who make the decisions upon which his life and nation depend?  We know, however, that even Zelenskyy does not believe the west is doing enough.  Otherwise, he would not be begging for more.

It is in America’s interest to stop Putin’s ambition of a new Soviet Union – and maybe more.  Lose the War, and America loses another democratic nation to the authoritarian enemy – even a potential future NATO ally.  We lose to Putin another strategic location … enormous natural resources …  a cooperative business relationship … intelligence gathering potential.

Fortunately, the small number of congressional members – on the left and right – are too few to prevent the full Congress from pursuing the critical security interests of both Ukraine and the United States.

As one of the television generals put it, this is the time to provide Ukraine with everything we have in the non-nuclear arsenal, so that the Ukraine military can drive every Russian soldier out of their country.

After Churchill’s visit, America upped support for the war in Europe.  One can only hope that Zelenskyy’s visit will have a similar effect.

So, there ‘tis.

About The Author

Larry Horist

So, there ‘tis… The opinions, perspectives and analyses of businessman, conservative writer and political strategist Larry Horist. Larry has an extensive background in economics and public policy. For more than 40 years, he ran his own Chicago based consulting firm. His clients included such conservative icons as Steve Forbes and Milton Friedman. He has served as a consultant to the Nixon White House and travelled the country as a spokesman for President Reagan’s economic reforms. Larry professional emphasis has been on civil rights and education. He was consultant to both the Chicago and the Detroit boards of education, the Educational Choice Foundation, the Chicago Teachers Academy and the Chicago Academy for the Performing Arts. Larry has testified as an expert witness before numerous legislative bodies, including the U. S. Congress, and has lectured at colleges and universities, including Harvard, Northwestern and DePaul. He served as Executive Director of the City Club of Chicago, where he led a successful two-year campaign to save the historic Chicago Theatre from the wrecking ball. Larry has been a guest on hundreds of public affairs talk shows, and hosted his own program, “Chicago In Sight,” on WIND radio. An award-winning debater, his insightful and sometimes controversial commentaries have appeared on the editorial pages of newspapers across the nation. He is praised by audiences for his style, substance and sense of humor. Larry retired from his consulting business to devote his time to writing. His books include a humorous look at collecting, “The Acrapulators’ Guide”, and a more serious history of the Democratic Party’s role in de facto institutional racism, “Who Put Blacks in That PLACE? -- The Long Sad History of the Democratic Party’s Oppression of Black Americans ... to This Day”. Larry currently lives in Boca Raton, Florida.

6 Comments

  1. frank stetson

    Yes, get them more. Especially the Patriots. Help them strategize how to take back Crimea; that would be a real thorn in Putin’s ass.

  2. Wes

    I totally agree with your message here.

    But I assume you realize that many of your fellow conservative thought leaders have ties to Russia, starting with the former president, whose huge debt from his failing businesses was bailed out by the Russian mafia-government in the early 2000s.

    The stooge strategy has been well known and well practiced in mafia circles. Find a dumb businessman who’s over his head in debt and bail him out with the understanding that he has a new owner.

    The other stooge was Arron Banks, a broke dude who somehow funded the Brexit campaign.

  3. Tom

    I totally agree with Larry and Frank. The world has been losing democracies since 2006. It is estimated that today, only one-fifth of the world’s population live in freedom and independence. We cannot let another democracy, no matter its past, to fall to an autocracy. Give them whatever they need to win this winter!

  4. Mike F

    For the past year, unconditional support for Ukraine has been guaranteed by having democrats control both houses of congress. Now, however, with Republicans controlling the house, that support is far from certain. Whether McCarthy ekes out a win as speaker of the house, or someone else prevails, they will be beholden to the nut jobs that Republicans have elected to Congress, and support for Ukraine will not be certain (ignorant people do not understand foreign policy). However, this should surprise no one, as there has not been a coherent Republican foreign policy since the days of Reagan when he bankrupted the FSU. Just saying, so people keep in mind when they wish for Republican control in Congress..(smart people need to be our elected officials…)

    • Wilfred

      I DON’T THINK IT WAS WISE TO GIVE UKRAINE THE PATRIOT MISSLE SYSTEM, ANYONE SHOULD UNDERSTAND BECAUSE IT WOULD PUT
      ISRAEL IN A REALLY BAD POSITION IF ONE WAS CAPTURED AND USED TO CREATE A DEFENSE AGAINST ITS ANTIDEFENSIVE ABILITY TO
      TAKE OUT THEIR INCOMING MISSLE ATTACKS, IF GERMANY WOULD NOT GIVE THEM THEIRS WHY THEN ARE WE NOT FOLLOWING THE
      STRATEGY ? ARE WE SO STUPID ?… IF THIS IS POSSIBLE, WOULD THIS NOT PUT ALL NATO COUNTIES AT A DISADVANTEGE…

    • Sam

      You lie.

  1. As the election nears, the author seems ever nervous and seems even willing to sacrifice his principles to the cause.…