The United States woke up on February 20 to discover that President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv, Ukraine just four days before the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion. The secret 22-hour trip departing at shortly after 4:00 am on February 20 culminated in a 10-hour train trip into Kyiv from Poland. Russian officials were notified of the Biden’s journey shortly before his departure “for deconfliction purposes” to avoid direct conflict between the U.S. and Russia.
Biden spent five hours in the Ukrainian capital, talking with President Volodymyr Zelensky and visiting U.S. embassy staff. Russian officials were notified of the Biden’s journey shortly before his departure “for deconfliction purposes” to avoid direct conflict between the U.S. and Russia. While in Ukraine, Biden promised another $460 million for howitzer shells, anti-tank missiles, air surveillance radars, and other aid and talked with Zelensky about “long-range weapons and the weapons that may still be supplied to Ukraine even though it wasn’t supplied before.” (Above: Biden and Zelenskyy saying goodbye at the Memorial Wall of Fallen Defenders of Ukraine in Russian-Ukrainian War with photos of killed soldiers, in Kyiv.)
During Biden’s unusual travel to a conflict zone where the U.S. or its allies lack control over the airspace, U.S. surveillance planes did kept watch over Kyiv from Polish airspace. The visit was unprecedented because, unlike other presidential visits to war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. has no presence on the ground in Ukraine.
Biden was accompanied by only three White House staff members and two journalists, one print reporter and one photographer, instead of the usual 13-person press pool. A two-person TV crew joined Biden’s motorcade in Kyiv, and nine other journalists were able to attend Biden’s meeting with Zelensky at the presidential palace. Details of Biden’s travels were not divulged until he was safely out of Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin plans a state-of-the-union speech to Russian lawmakers the day after Biden’s visit when Biden is speaking in Poland. Polls show flagging support in the country for continuing the war in Ukraine. China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, will also visit Moscow for talks regarding the war in Ukraine.
Far-right lawmakers were incensed about Biden’s secret trip to Ukraine and his support for the country. Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) wanted Biden to go visit the train derailment in East Palestine (OH), and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) accused Biden of “ditching America for Ukraine.” Rep. Greg Murphy (R-NC) blamed Biden for both the “war zone … at the southern border and “another war zone he created in Ukraine.” Furiously tweeting about Biden leaving the U.S. on Presidents Day, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) added, “I can not express how much Americans hate Joe Biden.”
Greene used Biden’s trip to again call for his impeachment:
“He went to Ukraine, a NON-NATO nation, whose leader is an actor and is apparently now commanding our United States military to world war. We must impeach this America Last fool before it’s too late.”
Amanda Marcotte called the anti-Zelensky legislators the “fascist faction” opposed to democracy. She described Tucker Carlson’s rants on his Fox show:
“Right after Zelenskyy’s speech to Congress, Tucker Carlson of Fox News described him as a ‘Ukrainian strip club manager’ and falsely said that Ukraine had been the aggressor, portraying Putin as the victim of a Ukrainian plot to ‘topple the Russian government.’ He also echoed the antisemitic talking points the Russian government has deployed against Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, by accusing him of waging ‘ongoing war against Christianity.’”
Fox’s Jesse Watters, another Russian asset, said that Zelenskyy was “charming, but he’s a killer” motivated by “vengeance.” Turning Points USA founder Charlie Kirk called Zelenskyy an “uppity foreigner” and an “international welfare queen.”
Almost two-thirds of people in the U.S. support Ukraine’s regaining its territory even if a prolonged conflict. Even 53 percent of Republicans agree. Although sanctions have increased oil prices in the world, 75 percent support these sanctions.
Another sector of Republicans supported Biden’s trip. In the conservative National Review, Mark Antonio Wright praised the president, writing that the visit “is an example of America in its finest tradition.” He explained:
“The moment reminds me not so much of Presidents Bush, Obama, and Trump flying unannounced to Iraq or Afghanistan, but of President Roosevelt’s wartime travels across the Atlantic. Make no mistake, there was risk involved in this trip. Traveling to the capital of a nation fighting a shooting war with a great power, the U.S. had no way to choreograph with exactitude the circumstances of his travel or arrival. Neither the U.S. nor Ukraine has total control of the airspace. Neither the U.S. nor Ukraine could guarantee Biden’s security on the ground. The president of the United States was inside the Russian WEZ—the weapons engagement zone—the entire trip. For that Joe Biden should receive credit.
“At home, it may often feel like our republic is irretrievably fractured. Abroad, mistakes and wrong turns have tarnished our reputation for competence and steadfastness. But America is still, for all its faults, seen in dark and terrible places as the last best hope. Beyond our shores, people still react to our presidents with hope. We should remember that.”
The Daily Beast journalist David Rothkopf declared that Biden’s visit shows leadership in foreign policy, putting him on a par with Presidents Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy:
“Kennedy and then Reagan in Berlin. Now, Biden in Kyiv. Periodically, during the past 60 years, American presidents have stood up at the eastern edge of Europe and looked to Russia to say, ‘We stand with our allies. Our resolve is unshakeable.’ Kennedy said, ‘Ich bin ein Berliner.’ Reagan said, ‘Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall.’ Biden, on his surprise President’s Day visit to Kyiv, said, ‘One year later, Kyiv stands. And Ukraine stands. Democracy stands.'”
Rothkopf added that Biden’s standing next to Zelensky and walking with him throughout Ukraine’s capital sends the message of solidarity “to those fighting for Ukraine.” Biden stated:
“I thought it was critical that there not be any doubt, none whatsoever, about U.S. support for Ukraine in the war. The Ukrainian people have stepped up in a way that few people ever have in the past…. It’s not just about freedom in Ukraine.… It’s about freedom of democracy at large.”
Jimmy Carter, the oldest living president in the United States, is also making news by entering hospice care in his home to spend his “remaining time” there. For the past several years, he has suffered from falls and skin cancer melanoma which spread to his liver and brain. (Right: Carter with Delaware’s then-Sen. Joe Biden.) A few tributes to Carter:
“This man moves humanity forward every single day.” – Maria Shriver, niece of former president John F. Kennedy
“Former President Carter’s love and compassion for all people set him apart as a leader, servant, and simply a great man striving to achieve a Beloved Community.” – Bernice King, daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King
“From the time he began his service in the United States military and through his presidency, he showed a consciousness of caring.” – Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)
“Jimmy Carter is one of the kindest most thoughtful people I’ve ever had the honor of meeting. He is the best of us.” – Jon Stewart, comedian and writer
The Israel-Egypt Camp David accords are one of Carter’s lasting achievements. (Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize for this presidential achievement in 2002.) – Craig Shirley, a biographer of Ronald Reagan who defeated Carter in 1980
“He leaves this planet so much better than he found it.” – Nick Kristof, New York Times columnist
“Rest easy, Mr. President. We will be forever by your side.” – Anthony Gugliemi, spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service which protected Carter for almost half a century
In his first campaign when he rose from a relatively unknown southern governor to the Oval Office in a tight race with incumbent Gerald Ford, Carter said:
“If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. [If I lie, I] would not deserve to be your president.”
Over 70 years ago, Carter a U.S. Navy lieutenant training to work on the nation’s first nuclear submarine, led 22 U.S. citizens in dismantling a nuclear reactor 110 miles from Ottawa, the Canadian capital, after an accident leading “to overheating fuel rods and significant damage.” In his 2015 autobiography, A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety, Carter described the incident and his preparations for repairing the reactor. On a nearby tennis court, they built an exact replica of the reactor and practiced their actions. Teams of three workers were lowered into the highly radioactive site for the 90-second maximum exposure time, longer than current standards. While there, each of them completed specialized tasks such as turning just one screw. Carter had radioactive urine for months, and this experience might have led to his cancer. Carter’s demand for near-absolute perfection, however, resulted in success.