The modern Republican Party has turned a blind eye to a lot of questionable behavior by its members in recent years. But North Carolina Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn’s comments earlier this week calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “thug” have sparked backlash from his fellow GOPers who are doing their best to hold the political line against Vladimir Putin. In interviews with CNN, Rep. Tom Rice (R-SC) said he didn’t think Cawthorn was “a serious legislator.” Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) told the news outlet, “I wish he hadn’t said it.” Arkansas Republican Rep. Steve Womack called Cawthorn’s remark “not a defensible comment,” and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said, “Madison is wrong, if there’s any thug in this world it’s Putin,” before reiterating his support for Cawthorn’s re-election campaign.
