Republicans’ topsy-turvy take on aid for Ukraine reveals party in thrall to Trump

Defense hawks such as Lindsey Graham who once demanded greater backing for Kyiv are now toeing the America First line

Nearly a decade ago, as Russian troops entered the Crimean peninsula, congressional Republicans were in uproar, blaming Moscow's land grab on what they claimed was a retreat from American leadership by then president Barack Obama. Loudest among the Republican critics was the South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, who assailed Obama as a weak, indecisive leader".

In a pre-dawn vote on Tuesday, Graham joined the majority of Senate Republicans in opposing a foreign aid package that would rush wartime assistance to Ukraine as it approaches the second anniversary of Russia's full invasion.