Former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney has blamed fellow Republican and House Speaker Mike Johnson for Russia’s latest offensive in Ukraine.

Russia has launched a new offensive into Ukraine’s Kharkiv oblast in recent days, more than two years after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Although Putin was initially hoping for a quick victory, Ukraine’s stronger-than-expected defense effort, bolstered by Western aid, for months prevented Putin’s forces from making substantial gains.

Cheney, who previously represented Wyoming’s at-large Congressional district, pinned some blame for the new offensive on Johnson in a post to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The House last month passed a foreign aid bill that provided funds to U.S. allies abroad including Ukraine and Israel. The bill came as Russia began making more progress in Ukraine as Western aid from the U.S. and other allies had begun to try up. Ukraine aid from the U.S. faced months of delays amid opposition from conservative House Republicans.

Cheney on Tuesday responded to a post from former President George W. Bush‘s speechwriter Mark Thiessen, who praised Johnson as a “hero” for passing the Ukraine funding bill despite threats of his ouster from some conservative members of Congress.

“Johnson is a hero for what he did in Ukraine, not to mention Israel, Taiwan and FISA. He put his job on the line,” Thiessen wrote.

Cheney responded, “By the way, you know that Johnson blocked Ukraine aid for months. His inexcusable delay gave Putin time to reconstitute his forces and launch a new offensive. That’s not heroic.”

When reached by Newsweek, a spokesperson for Johnson noted that the House of Representatives took only two months to pass a bill to fund Ukraine, while also focusing on passing appropriations bills to fund the U.S. government while pointing out the Senate took four months to pass a foreign aid bill.

Ukraine aid presented a difficult situation for Johnson, who faced threats of a motion to vacate from Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch opponent of sending aid to Ukraine. Meanwhile, moderates and Democrats were pushing for the aid package, arguing preventing Russia from making more progress was key to both Ukrainian and American security.

Ultimately, Johnson managed to pass the Ukraine aid bill while also maintaining his speakership. Greene called a motion to vacate against Johnson, but that vote ultimately failed as Democrats joined Republicans in opposing the effort to remove him from his speakership position.

The House bill passed the Senate with 79 votes. The Senate voted on a separate Ukraine aid bill in February, with 70 Senators voting for it. However, that bill did not pass the House.

While Cheney has ramped up her criticism of Johnson, the Republican speaker has received bipartisan praise over the Ukraine aid vote.

Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, praised Johnson on ABC News’ This Week on April 21.

“I’m a progressive Democrat and I think you would have a few progressive Democrats doing that. And I disagree with Speaker Johnson on many issues and have been very critical of him. But he did the right thing here and he deserves to keep his job until the end of his term,” he said.

https://www.newsweek.com/liz-cheney-blames-mike-jonson-russia-offensive-1901043?piano_t=1