During an appearance on Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio responded to Ron DeSantis' recent comments where he framed Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a "territorial dispute."
Speaking to Fox News host Tucker Carlson this Monday, DeSantis broke with many in his party when he said supporting Ukraine in the war should not be a top priority for the U.S., saying that vital interests such as "securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness with our military, achieving energy security and independence, and checking the economic, cultural and military power of the Chinese Communist Party" should not take a backseat when it comes to U.S. support for Ukraine.
When asked by Hewitt about DeSantis' comments, Rubio replied that the war is "not a territorial dispute in the sense anymore than it would be a territorial dispute if the United States decided that it wanted to save Canada or take over the Bahamas."
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"Just because someone claims something doesn't mean it belongs to them," Rubio continued. "This is an invasion. The Russians basically decided we want a government in Ukraine we have control over, and their goal was we're gonna go in, we're gonna topple their government ... and then we'll install a puppet, give them some fake elections, and then they'll be in our orbit of influence."
Speaking to Carlson, DeSantis went on to say that the U.S. "should not provide assistance that could require the deployment of American troops or enable Ukraine to engage in offensive operations beyond its borders."
