Senator Roger Marshall was slow to recognize the steep challenge he faced in his solidly conservative state. Now he is confronting dissent among voters with deep economic worries.
Senators have warned the White House they will withhold confirmation votes until the administration ensures the restoration of communications capabilities used by Ukraine’s military.
Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican of Pennsylvania and a former F.B.I. agent who worked on Russian counterintelligence in Kyiv, said he doubted the communication problems were accidental.
Cabinet members are seldom major figures in campaigns, but the defense secretary’s forays into politics and his bravado in defense of an unpopular war have made him a target.
In the final weeks of a midterm congressional battle in which voters’ opposition to the war with Iran has become a major issue, Democrats are increasingly making Mr. Hegseth a main character in their campaign messaging.
Republicans joined Democrats in calling on the Pentagon’s inspector general to look into whether the Trump administration was responsible for the interruption.
The move will force a vote on the agreement after the midterm elections, though it faces steep odds in the Republican-controlled Congress even amid bipartisan concern about the deal.
A bipartisan group of 12 senators called on the president to drop his decision to ease sanctions on Russia’s exports of diesel fuel, saying the deal would help Moscow continue the war in Ukraine.
The letter, led by Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, came just weeks after Congress overwhelmingly approved legislation intended to increase economic pressure on Moscow and its allies.
A bipartisan group of 12 senators called on the president to drop his decision to ease sanctions on Russia’s exports of diesel fuel, saying the deal would help Moscow continue the war in Ukraine.
The letter, led by Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, came just weeks after Congress overwhelmingly approved legislation intended to increase economic pressure on Moscow and its allies.
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