Comments from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sparked a second day of ire from GOP figures, with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) demanding he fire the country’s ambassador to the U.S., while a House panel launched an investigation after suggesting a recent appearance by Zelensky amounted to election meddling.
House Oversight and Accountability Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) on Wednesday morning launched an inquiry into Zelensky’s trip to Pennsylvania, suggesting a visit to a factory that supplies munitions to the country constituted a campaign stop for Vice President Harris.
Republicans cried foul over the visit Tuesday, particularly after Zelensky issued critical comments about former President Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), during a separate interview.
Zelensky visited the factory flanked by Pennsylvania Democrats, including Gov. Josh Shapiro (D). It is common for governors to appear at such events in their state, , and other attendees included the largely Democratic officials who represent the Scranton area.
Johnson and Comer, however, said appearing with a political figure who was briefly a contender to serve as Harris’s running mate made the stop political in nature.
“The facility was in a politically contested battleground state, was led by a top political surrogate for Kamala Harris, and failed to include a single Republican because – on purpose – no Republicans were invited. The tour was clearly a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and is clearly election interference,” Johnson wrote Wednesday to Zelensky.
“I demand that you immediately fire Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States, Oksana Markarova,” he added, writing that she can no longer “fairly and effectively serve as a diplomat in this country.”
A spokesperson for the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Democrats dismissed Johnson and Comer’s comments as another instance of the GOP turning their back on an important U.S. ally.
“As President Zelenskyy fights for freedom and the rule of law on behalf of democracies around the world, Donald Trump and his craven MAGA followers side time and again with Vladimir Putin,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the Oversight panel, said in a statement.
Zelensky’s visit was described by Pennsylvania as him making “a special trip to the Keystone State to visit the Pennsylvania workers who are playing a vital role in Ukraine’s defense.”
Zelensky’s visit to Pennsylvania mirrors a trip to Utah in July, where he met with Republican Gov. Spencer Cox and signed a memorandum of understanding with state leaders.
In both cases, state leaders expressed support for Ukraine in its battle against Russia.
While Republicans have fixated on Zelensky’s visit to the Pennsylvania, it’s an interview the Ukrainian president did that initially sparked GOP criticism.
In an interview with The New Yorker published Sunday, Zelensky called Vance “too radical” due to his views on Ukraine, and suggested the senator study World War II. Vance has called to end U.S. support for Ukraine, and for Kyiv to cede territory to Russia in a peace deal.
“The idea that the world should end this war at Ukraine’s expense is unacceptable,” Zelensky said in the interview.
Zelensky struck a more cautious tone toward Trump, saying they have had good conversations on the phone but that the GOP presidential candidate “doesn’t really know how to stop the war, even if he might think he knows how.”
Comer’s letter asks the White House, Justice Department officials and the Pentagon to provide details about any coordination about the trip, accusing the Biden administration of having “orchestrated and used government resources to make possible this apparent campaign event that resulted in the potential interference in a federal election.”
Comer’s probe comes after Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) led eight other Republicans in demanding an investigation from the inspectors general of both the Justice Department and Department of Defense seeking all federal resources dedicated to the visit.
House Oversight Democrats suggested Comer’s new probe reflects a broader effort to undermine Ukraine.
“America didn’t forget that Chairman Comer called Ukraine a foreign adversary and used the Committee to repeat and amplify Russian propaganda. It is sadly unsurprising he is once again working to undermine Ukraine’s efforts to repel Putin’s lawless, bloody, and unjustified invasion.”
“Chairman Comer obviously does not understand nor appreciate the concept of an ‘ally.’ America is an ally of Ukraine, and Ukraine is an ally of America,” Raskin said.
“Ukraine is in the middle of a war with Russia thrust upon it by Vladimir Putin’s filthy imperialist and irredentist invasion. The American people have invested billions of dollars to help Ukraine defend its sovereignty and democracy because we share common interests and something called values.”
Updated 7:04 p.m.