‘Electric moment’: CT’s Murphy, Blumenthal, praise visit to Congress by Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington on Wednesday drew praise from Connecticut’s two senators, each using the phrase “electric” to describe the battle-tested leader’s address to Congress. 

The surprise visit, which unfolded just days after Zelenskyy’s visit to the front-lines of eastern Ukraine, was part of an effort to thank Congress and the American people for the billions of dollars in military and financial aid sent to defend the country from Russia’s ongoing invasion, while also imploring lawmakers for additional support. Zelenskyy capped off the trip by handing a Ukrainian flag signed by soldiers to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. 

Both of Connecticut’s senators, Democrats Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal, traveled to Ukraine to meet with Zelenskyy in January, prior to Russia’s invasion.

After Zelenskyy’s speech on Wednesday, Murphy appeared on MSNBC with Rachel Maddow to praise the Ukrainian president and echo his call for additional aid, including $45 billion in military and economic support written into a pending spending bill.

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“To think about the pressure on him to flee to save his own life in the early days of the invasion, it’s just amazing to see what one person can do,” Murphy said, adding “Leadership still matters in the world.”

In his own statement, Blumenthal called Zelenskyy’s speech and “electric moment” as well as a “call to arms” for Congress.

“Unfurling Ukraine’s flag brought from the battlefield was a striking symbol of our unshakable bonds,” Blumenthal said. “Tonight, my colleagues in Congress and our entire nation saw what so deeply inspired me about President Zelenskyy during our meetings this year: incomparable courage and conviction and an unshakable determination to fight Putin’s savage genocidal onslaught, no matter what it takes.”

In his speech, Zelenskyy framed the need for additional funding and weapons systems in bipartisan terms, noting that Russia has received military support from nations like Iran. He also invoked American victory in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II, which was fought at Christmastime. Some Republicans, however, have questioned the rationale for additional spending. 

The next year will be a “turning point” in the war, Zelenskyy told lawmakers, suggesting that Russia could re-double or escalate its efforts. 

“Your money is not charity,” Zelenskyy said, according to a transcript of his remarks. “It’s an investment in the global security and democracy that we handle in the most responsible way.”

As he entered the chamber, Zelenskyy was seen shaking hands with U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D- Conn., the chairwoman of the powerful Appropriations Committee until Republicans take control of Congress early next year. 

“It was an honor to listen to the words of President Zelenskyy yesterday. His leadership and bravery in the fight against tyranny is awe inspiring,” DeLauro said in a statement posted to Twitter. “I promise to stand with Ukraine, and to fight for resources that help reinforce global security and democracy.

Murphy, who sits on both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Ukraine Caucus, said that Zelenskyy’s trip was likely to make Russian President Vladimir Putin “furious,” but discounted the possibility that the war could soon escalate with the use of nuclear weapons or incursions into other European countries that are a part of NATO. 

“Putin is in a position where he can barely afford the war in Ukraine, he absolutely cannot afford a war with the United States or with NATO,” Murphy said.  

Still, Murphy said that it was important for the U.S. to keep clear limits on the types of support it supplies to Ukraine, including not sending American troops to fight or weapons that can be used offensively within Russia’s borders. 

“It is important for us to make sure that we are keeping the United States out of a direct conflict with Russia,” Murphy said.