Sonoma County’s congressmen condemn Russian invasion of Ukraine
Sonoma County’s two Democratic congressmen — a Vietnam War veteran and a former environmental attorney — were united Thursday in condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and applauding President Joe Biden’s response.
Rep. Mike Thompson of St. Helena is in his 12th term representing Wine Country. A member of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition, he is regarded as a moderate aligned with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Rep. Jared Huffman of San Rafael is in his fifth term and a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which includes liberal firebrands Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
The congressmen were on the same page after Biden’s televised remarks that focused on the mounting economic penalties designed to punish Russia for the assault that unleashed military conflict in Europe on a scale not seen since the end of World War II.
Complimenting Biden’s remarks as “pretty direct and succinct,” Thompson voiced concern about a wider war in Europe.
“I think it would be incredibly naive to think this is all Putin may do,” said Thompson, describing the Russian president as “absolute evil.”
“I think he is a dangerous individual who will be responsible for tragic death in Russia and Ukraine,” which share a common border in Eastern Europe.
The only ripple in Democratic ranks came from members who pressed for more stringent sanctions, including Rep. Adam Schiff of Burbank, who leads the House Intelligence Committee.
“I think it needs to be met with the strongest consequences possible,” Schiff said.
The Ukrainian capital of Kyiv is about 500 miles southwest of Moscow, nearly the same distance apart as Santa Rosa and San Diego.
Thompson said he does not expect U.S. forces to enter Ukraine — “no boots on the ground” — but acknowledged that NATO members are obliged to consider an attack on anyone an attack on all.
“That’s very troubling,” he said. “I worry about our allies.”
Ukraine does not belong to NATO, a 30-member military alliance created by a treaty in 1949; the U.S. and Canada are the two members outside Europe.
Four nations bordering Ukraine — Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania — belong to NATO. Three members — France, United Kingdom and the U.S. — have nuclear arms, as does Russia.
“A nuclear crisis is unlikely, but not impossible,” Tom Nichols wrote in The Atlantic website on Thursday, noting the Russians do not need nuclear weapons to defeat Ukraine.
Thompson, who spent Thursday in Sonoma and Napa counties, said Biden’s speech “laid out a position I think we all could agree on.”
The sanctions Biden described are intended to stunt Russia’s economy and “minimize impact on the United States and our allies,” Thompson said.
“He (Biden) was pretty clear we’re not in this alone,” Thompson said, referring to the NATO alliance.
Huffman called the invasion an “unprovoked and unjustified attack” that “undermines democracy and world order” in a statement Thursday morning.
“Let’s be clear: This is a war of choice that will lead to catastrophic suffering and loss of life for which Russia alone will be responsible,” he said.
The United States and its allies are prepared to impose “more severe sanctions on Russia than we already have,” Huffman said, without specifying that those should be.
Thompson said in a tweet Wednesday night that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s action “is pure evil and a direct attack on democracy.”
The United States and its allies are prepared to impose “more severe sanctions on Russia than we already have,” Huffman said, without specifying that those should be.
Thompson said in a tweet Wednesday night that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s action “is pure evil and a direct attack on democracy.”
By: Guy Kovner
Source: Press Democrat
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