Republicans moved swiftly to denounce Rep. Madison Cawthorn's slur against Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy -- who he called a "thug" -- but he's not all that far outside the GOP mainstream.
The North Carolina Republican drew widespread condemnation for comments made last week at a town hall that were reported Thursday, with GOP lawmakers including Liz Cheney, Joni Ernst and Lindsey Graham speaking out against Cawthorn, but The Bulwark columnist Charlie Sykes called out their hypocrisy.
"But Madison Cawthorn is not a complete outlier here," Sykes wrote. "Liz Cheney calls him a member of the Putin wing of the GOP, but it is important to remember that the leader of that wing is Donald J. Trump, the once and perhaps future president."
Cawthorn's comments sounded to Sykes like talking points from the MAGA right, and he said the first-term lawmaker was probably surprised by the negative reaction to his insults.
RELATED: Fiona Hill explains the most likely endgame for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
"For years, the right-wing media — led by Donald Trump himself — has been obsessed with the alleged vileness of Ukraine, first in the wake of the 2016 election, and then with the whole Hunter-Biden-Burisma-I-would-like-you-to-do-us-a-favor-thing," Sykes wrote. "Lest we forget, during Russiagate, Rudy Giuliani and Sean Hannity peddled insane conspiracy theories that tried to blame Ukraine for the election interference committed by Russia."
Trump praised Vladimir Putin's invasion as "genius" and "very savvy," and retired Army Col. Douglas Macgregor, a Pentagon official in the Trump administration, said the U.S. should "absolutely" let the Russian president take Ukraine.
"But let’s get back to Madison Cawthorn, who rose to political infamy in the midst of the MAGA counter-narratives about Ukraine," Sykes wrote. "He understood that the Ukraine narratives are central to Trump’s revisionist history. During the first impeachment trial, the alleged corruption and evil of Ukraine became Trumpian gospel."
"And now Cawthorn and the rest of the MAGAverse just can’t quit it. The sunk costs are too great," he concluded. "For Trump to be exonerated, Ukraine and Zelenskyy must be smeared."
NOW WATCH: 'Keep your mouth shut!' Morning Joe rips GOP senators for blabbing about Ukraine aid
'Keep your mouth shut!' Morning Joe rips GOP senators for blabbing about Ukraine aidwww.youtube.com
