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July 8, 2024 Editor, The News-Gazette: I have to wonder if there is a limit to Congressman Ben Clines’ hypocrisy. His July 3 “6th District Perspectives” includes a section titled “Deterring America’s Adversaries and Supporting our Allies” where Cline extols a Republican sponsored Act (H.R. 8771) that massages the State Department’s fiscal 2025 budget in accordance with Republican priorities which will almost certainly be dead on arrival at the Senate. Not exactly a shot across the bows of our main international enemies.
On the other hand, Cline recently back a failed amendment (which over 100 Republicans voted against) by Marjorie Taylor Greene to reduce financial support to NATO because the alliance supports Ukraine in its existential battle for survival against Russia.
Cline has consistently voted against our financial and military support of Ukraine — a voting record which can only delight Vladimir Putin. Ben Cline has zero educational or professional background in national security policy so perhaps his opposition to our aid to Ukraine stems from a basic ignorance of the geopolitical stakes involved in the war.
My advice to him would be to recognize Russia for what it is — an imperialist autocracy ideologically opposed to western liberal democracy and our Americanled international security architecture which underlies global peace, progress, and prosperity.
Unfortunately, I think it is much more likely that Cline will continue to “deter America’s allies, while supporting our adversaries.” EDWARD GRIMES Rockbridge County
