'We do not need American soldiers fighting in Europe': Josh Hawley slams Biden over Ukraine in bizarre CPAC speech

On Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) attacked President Joe Biden for the U.S. response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to the Daily Signal.

“We do not need American soldiers fighting in Europe,” said Hawley. “We need to be really clear that what the Russians are doing is absolutely wrong, that it is a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, and now we need a policy. Joe Biden hasn’t had any policy.”

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Biden has made clear he will not send American troops to fight in Ukraine. He has deployed some forces to nearby NATO countries, including to Poland to help Ukrainian refugees. More broadly, U.S. troops frequently are stationed in Europe for security reasons; for example, Germany alone has over 20 U.S. military bases.

This comes as some other Republicans, like Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY), have praised the Biden administration for its sanctions against Russia. Today, Biden announced a further round of sanctions, including export blocks on technology.