A Message for Ukraine

The primary audience for Wednesday’s CNN Republican presidential primary debate consisted of American voters. But at least one potential viewer overseas will want to note the results. If Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky needed any further incentive to seek a satisfactory conclusion to his country’s war against Russian invaders, he received another reminder that American aid is not limitless. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is among the most enthusiastic backers of Ukraine in American politics, yet even she was calling for conditions on U.S. aid that until recently had only modest support in Washington.

The debate was something of an oddity in modern American politics, so perhaps it can be dismissed as an outlier. Republican candidates have grown used to media moderators taking cheap shots intended to create viral moments of GOP embarrassment. But kudos to CNN’s Dana Bash and Jake Tapper for a production that was largely substantive, thorough and fair. Whether Ms. Haley and Mr. DeSantis were fair to each other is another question.