WATCH: Viral Video Is Awkward Reminder Of Right-Wing Putin Worship

Today, there are numerous Republicans turning to their social media and other platforms to make public statements accusing President Joe Biden of failing to do enough against Vladimir Putin as the Russian dictator directs an invasion of Ukraine. However, they may want to consider the planks in the eyes of their own party — after all, Donald Trump and several of his sycophants have spent years praising and idolizing Putin.

A new viral video displays exactly that, showing Republican political figures including former New York City Mayor and former personal attorney to the president Rudy Giuliani, former President Donald Trump, and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, as well as right-wing media personality Tucker Carlson, heaping praise on Putin for his “talent,” “shrewd[ness],” “savvy,” and “genius,” and even for, apparently, not being involved in the U.S. education system.

Maybe they were auditioning for Russian state TV all along… pic.twitter.com/IA7mMRR1LP

— The Recount (@therecount) February 27, 2022

The appearances include Giuliani saying that Russia has a President while the U.S. doesn’t, as he describes Putin as a stronger leader than Biden, and Pompeo describing the Russian leader as “shrewd, savvy, elegantly sophisticated, and capable,” and declaring “enormous respect” for him. There’s a single example from Trump’s endless praise of the dictator, in this case specifically for the strategy of claiming that he’s entering Ukraine for “peacekeeping” purposes. Then there’s the Carlson clip, which goes beyond all imagining, as he asks why it’s more appropriate to side with Ukraine than Russia, pivoting to a list of his standard strawman grievances, including an imagined effort to “snuff out Christianity” in the United States.

Republicans can attack Biden for things like not making the first move against Putin, before he staged his invasion, as Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) can be seen to do in the tweet below, or failing to do enough now, as Ted Cruz (R-TX) can be seen doing in the tweet below that, but they can’t erase the history of their own party cozying up to Putin.

If Biden knew Putin was preparing for this, why didn’t he do anything?

— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) February 28, 2022

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These sanctions are so full of holes you could drive a Russian tank through them.

The Biden administration must do more, and then Congress must move to make the most important and powerful ones permanent, including Nord Stream 2 sanctions.

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 27, 2022