As the answers rolled in Monday for Tucker Carlson’s questionnaire on Ukraine, sent to all the declared and presumptive Republican candidates for the presidency, Ron DeSantis’s answer stood out for a few reasons. First, of course, he had finally staked out a position on an issue that he had been largely dodging for a year. Second, and more notably, he essentially bucked the Republican establishment by taking a position most similar to his MAGA-aligned, more isolationist rival, Donald Trump. 

Defending Ukraine, DeSantis said, does not represent a vital national security interest to the United States. He dismissively referred to Russia’s invasion as a “territorial dispute.” And he declared that any policy in favor of “regime change” in Russia created an incalculable geopolitical, and possibly existential risk. Discussing the war, he continued, served as a distraction from “our country’s most pressing challenges”—the border, China, energy independence, etcetera. Carlson was so pleased that he read the full statement on air. 

Given the profile of the current Republican voting bloc, this might be the safest position for DeSantis. Recent polling from Gallup indicates that the vast majority of Republicans harbor little affection for Russia. Only 6 percent viewed Russia favorably, while 56 percent viewed Ukraine favorably. But the poll also suggested that Republicans viewed China as a stronger threat to American interests—a whopping 76 percent of Republicans called it America’s number one enemy, whereas 53 percent of Democrats identified Russia as said enemy. The issue of resolving Ukraine, on the right at least, can easily be placed on the policy backburner.