The Conservative Political Action Conference’s Twitter account deleted a tweet criticising Congress for passing aid to Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion on Friday.
On Friday evening, the account for the popular conservative gathering tweeted about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s annexation of certain territories in Ukraine and Congress’s recent passage of additional aid to Ukraine.
“Vladimir Putin announces the annexation of 4 Ukrainian-occupied territories,” the tweet said. “Biden and the Dems continue to send Ukraine billions of taxpayer dollars. Meanwhile, we are under attack at our southern border. When will Democrats put #AmericaFirst and end gift-giving to Ukraine?”
The Senate passed a continuing resolution to keep the government open until 16 December on Thursday which the House passed on Friday that included $12.3b in aid for Ukraine. President Joe Biden signed the resolution to prevent a government shutdown.
Every House Democrat voted for the legislation on Friday but only ten Republicans supported it with 201 Republicans opposing it, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy as well as hardline conservatives like Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Matt Gaetz of Florida and Lauren Boebert of Colorado.
Ms Greene for her part vocally criticised aiding Ukraine, comparing Mr Biden to a mob boss.
“And so all of this has been a scam and it's been just a typical mob boss move of Joe Biden because that's all he is like a mob boss and and a current business dealer, funneling US taxpayer dollars,” she said in an interview with Real America’s Voice.
CPAC later deleted the tweet. CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp told The Washington Post, “Due to my travel into a distant time zone it was never approved per usual.”
In a statement later, CPAC apologised for the tweet but stood by the sentiment.
“We must oppose Putin, but American taxpayers should not be shouldering the vast majority of the cost,” it said in a statement. “The tweet belittled the plight of the innocent Ukrainian people.”
