On Tuesday, Georgia Republicans in the state’s 11th Congressional District will head to the polls to vote in the runoff election between conservative former state senator Barry Loudermilk and incumbent Congressman Bob Barr (R-GA). Loudermilk enjoys the support of David Barton and General Jerry Boykin among others, and he spoke to Glenn on radio this morning about the current conflict in Ukraine and the upcoming election.
Loudermilk spent time in Ukraine in 2003, teaching American history via a program with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The hope was to prepare the next generation of Ukrainian children to be dedicated to the path of liberty and freedom by familiarizing them with the United States’ independence.
“It was incredible. But the most incredible thing that happened to me – after I was teaching on Thanksgiving Day in 2003 about American history, the founding of America, I was having dinner with some government officials,” Loudermilk said. “One of them kept asking me more and more questions about the founding of America. And I finally asked him, ‘Why are you so interested in American history?’ And, Glenn, what he said changed my life because he said, ‘We want to become what you were.’ What you were.”
The verb tense of the statement the Ukrainian official uttered is what struck Loudermilk most. Given the Obama Administration’s lackadaisical response to the current Russia/Ukraine conflict, Glenn asked Loudermilk what we should be most aware of and concerned about.
“This has the potential to be an international catastrophe,” Loudermilk said, “especially with our ally Ukraine already fighting Russian forces that are insurgents operating within the border of Ukraine.”
In the aftermath of the crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 on Thursday, Loudermilk spoke to a friend of his who is very involved in the nationalist fight in Ukraine. While the conditions on the ground are difficult, the Ukrainian people have not lost hope.
“I contacted, via Skype, a friend of mine who is in Kiev, and he's one of the nationalists there,” he explained. “He told me yesterday, ‘Barry, the people are… taking their vacation time to go volunteer with the national defense battalions to defend their homeland.’ They're taking their vacation time, Glenn, to go defend their nation! [The U.S.] can't even get people to… take an hour off of lunch to go to the polls. We can learn from Ukraine going forward.”
You can learn more about Loudermilk’s campaign HERE.