'Utter hypocrisy': Republicans blame Biden for Ukraine war after letting Trump off the hook for extortion scheme

Republicans who are pressing President Joe Biden to do more to help Ukraine still have no regrets about letting Donald Trump off the hook for an extortion scheme against that same nation.

Trump held up congressionally approved military aid to Ukraine in 2019 in a scheme to get president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to announce investigations into Biden and his family, but GOP lawmakers insist their acquittal has no bearing on their current support for helping the nation fight back against Russian aggression, reported Politico.

“That was the biggest nothing-burger in the world that resulted in an impeachment by the House,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) “In many respects, it further validates Donald Trump’s position.”

Democrats have blamed Trump for emboldening Russian president Vladimir Putin, but GOP lawmakers are claiming the impeachment, and not the former president's actions, put Ukraine at risk.

READ: Expert: GOP in crisis after Trump-loving Republicans enabled extremists

“That was all getting worked out, it would have been worked out quietly," said Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI). "They would have gotten [the aid]. It was the Democrats, the whistleblowers … who did that, and they dramatically harmed Ukraine as a result. That’s the real lesson here.”

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who led the first impeachment case, said Trump's scheme sent Putin a message that the U.S. and its allies did not care about Ukraine, and he said GOP criticism of Biden's handling of the war was "utter hypocrisy," but Republicans don't seem to care.

“There’s a lot of things that you could involve President Trump in," said Sen. Roy Blunt [R-MO], "but our failure to help the Ukrainians prepare for what could happen after 100,000 troops moved to their border and sat there for weeks, would not be one of them."