Brand New Congress statement on the illegal Kremlin invasion and bombing of Ukraine
Like all of you, for the last 24 hours, we at Brand New Congress have watched with horror and rage as the Kremlin launched an illegal invasion and began terrorizing the people of Ukraine with indiscriminate bombing.
Some of us have friends in Ukraine we haven’t been able to reach. Others of us are experiencing PTSD at the sound of the air raid sirens.
All of us are trying to process our shock and disbelief. How is it possible, mere months after the U.S. finally ended OUR longest war, that the world is now on the precipice of another long conflict?
Let us be clear: Brand New Congress vehemently and unequivocally condemns Vladimir Putin and his government for this illegal invasion.
When we hear the screams of children as Russian military jets fire missiles into occupied apartment buildings, know that he alone bears responsibility for their blood and terror. Whatever decisions and conditions other governments (including the United States) have contributed to which brought this moment to bear, the Kremlin bears full responsibility for the bloodshed and horror they are inflicting on their neighbors right now.
What happens next is crucial. The decisions we make as a nation will determine if this conflict will escalate into a sprawling ground war the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Second World War; whether we will enter into a new Cold War stalemate where the constant threat of nuclear annihilation hangs over our heads; or whether we will urgently pursue peace through radical de-escalation of this conflict.
As we witness the horrors of war in real time over social media, we beseech the American people to imagine the terror the Ukrainian people are feeling in this moment – and to recognize that our government has elicited the same feelings of terror from countries we have illegally invaded. We beg you to sit with that deeply uncomfortable knowledge, and reckon with the urgency of forging a new American foreign policy paradigm rooted in peace.
The price of war is unbearable. It cannot be measured in Dollars or Rubles. It is beyond even the scope of deaths and injuries.
The cost of war is the shattered dreams and hopes of an entire generation. The loss of possibility. The stolen joy.
The cost of war is working people who will be conscripted into service to kill one another for someone else’s profit. It is children who will grow up without parents, if they live to grow up at all.
It is the destruction of art and history, the places and the ways we express ourselves. The human moments we share that are erased by violence.
The true cost of war is incalculable, and the price is too high. We must work urgently for peace.
Lastly, we will say that we are incredibly proud of our slate of candidates for their principled, purposeful statements on the situation in Ukraine, and their clear vision for peace. Moments like these test any leader, and too few are passing that test today.
We are proud to stand with candidates who remain firm in their principles to rightfully condemn the Kremlin’s violence against Ukraine while urging our government to refrain from escalating this conflict and strive for peaceful resolution.
We don’t have a list of policy prescriptions to offer you right now, in this moment. Our hearts are too broken. But we are consulting with subject matter experts and will bring forth resources soon.
For now, please join us in solidarity with Ukraine.
