Republicans used to fear Russians. Here's what they think now.
By Dina Smeltz February 16 at 6:00 AM
For decades, the Republican Party has been more hawkish toward Russia than Democrats. That’s changed with President Trump’s election. Even everyday Republicans are now more positive than Democrats toward Russia, according to several opinion polls.
In fact, on the issue of Russia cyber-meddling in the U.S. elections, Republican public opinion more closely resembles public opinion in Russia than overall opinion in the United States.
Here’s an example. On Feb. 5, Trump spoke with Fox News host Bill O’Reilly. After the president reiterated his respect for Putin, O’Reilly interjected, “He’s a killer, though. Putin’s a killer.” To which Trump responded, “What do you think, our country’s so innocent?”
This softer line on Russia is out of step not only with GOP elites, but also with overall American views.
Americans remain largely unfavorable toward Putin and Russia.
That’s been true since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. A Jan. 20-25 Quinnipiac University survey found that only 9 percent of Americans have a favorable view of Vladimir Putin, while 70 percent are unfavorable. And a Dec. 16-18 Chicago Council Survey (CCS) shows that American attitudes toward Russia have fallen to new lows after U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Russia hacked into the emails of both the DNC and the RNC.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/02/16/republicans-used-to-fear-russians-heres-what-they-think-now/?utm_term=.f769743841ed&wpisrc=nl_politics&wpmm=1