Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar votes against House resolution to support Ukrainians

PHOENIX – Republican Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona was one of just three U.S. House members to vote no Wednesday on a resolution titled “Supporting the people of Ukraine.”

The vote came less than a week after Gosar, a six-term congressman from Prescott, took part in an event at which Russian President Vladimir Putin was cheered.

The resolution says the House “stands steadfastly, staunchly, proudly and fervently behind the Ukrainian people in their fight against the authoritarian Putin regime.”

It calls for an immediate cease-fire and the removal of Russian forces from Ukraine, pledges U.S. support for the Ukrainian resistance and vows to provide “significant additional aid and humanitarian relief to Ukrainian refugees fleeing Russia’s aggression.”

The Senate unanimously approved a similar measure in support of Ukraine last month.

Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Matt Rosendale of Montana joined Gosar in opposing the House resolution.

In a thread on his personal Twitter account, Gosar cited something that wasn’t actually in the resolution – that it gives Ukraine “defacto NATO status” and thus would drag the U.S. into war — as his reason for opposing it.

Simple resolutions are not binding law. They are used only for matters concerning the rules, operation or opinion of either chamber, according to the U.S. Congress website.

Gosar reportedly appeared via prerecorded video last week at the America First Political Action Conference, which was founded by white nationalist Nick Fuentes.

Video from Friday’s event in Orlando, Florida, shows Fuentes asking the audience to applaud for Russia and the crowd breaking into a chant of “Putin, Putin, Putin!”

Gosar spoke in person at AFPAC in 2021. Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia appeared in person at this year’s event, and both she and Gosar have drawn criticism from their own party for participating.

“I see two colleagues who went and participated with a group that has a leader that many times gives you anti-Semitic views, led a chant for Putin,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Monday, according to CNN.

“To me, it was appalling and wrong. There’s no place in our party for any of this.”

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) used the term “morons” while talking about the pair during a CNN interview.

“Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar, I don’t know them,” Romney said Sunday. “I’m reminded of the old line from the ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’ movie, where one character says, ‘Morons, I have morons on my team.'”

It’s not the first time Gosar has been admonished for his behavior.

In November 2021, the House voted to censure him over a controversial animated video clip he posted online that depicted him striking Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in the neck with a sword and attacking President Joe Biden.

Gosar was also stripped of his seats on the Natural Resources and the Oversight and Reform committees at the time.

Two Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, joined the majority Democrats in the censure vote, which passed 223-207, with one “present.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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