What's Up With Ukraine's 'Enemy List' of Conservatives?

Sarah Arnold reporting for Townhall 

Republicans are demanding answers from the State Department after a study revealed a Ukrainian non-governmental organization (NGO) “Enemies list” that includes GOP lawmakers, activists, think tanks, news outlets, and others. 

Republican Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) wrote a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken regarding a State Department-linked NGO that published a list of Americans labeled as "Trumpists and Communists” who have been opposed to providing Ukraine with U.S. funds. 

The study, “Rollercoaster: From Trumpists to Communists. The forces in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine and how they do it,” cites 338 people and 76 organizations. The list is broken up into three categories: Politics, Media, and Experts. 

The list includes Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), former President Donald Trump, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), Matt Walsh, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), and others. Vance and Gaetz are also among those listed in the text. 

“We've identified a broad spectrum of aid opponents, ranging from Trump supporters to communists, and examined their connections," the study, released by the Data Journalism Agency (TEXTY), states. “While our research does not cover every public figure opposing aid to Ukraine it highlights prominent individuals and common arguments that often mirror Kremlin propaganda.” 

On June 6, 2024, a Ukrainian corporation, Texty.org.ua, published an online article entitled ‘Rollercoaster: From Trumpists to Communists. The forces in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine and how they do it.’ The title of this article oversells the product: it is a substantively thin piece, largely an excuse to smear a large group of Americans who have been skeptical of aid to Ukraine in one form or another. But it is being broadcast as a part of a coordinated media strategy that has all the hallmarks of a U.S.-targeting influence operation. If this were merely some random news outlet in a foreign nation, such a hit piece would be easily ignored. [Bondarenko, the founder of texty.org.ua is [listed on a U.S. government website as supported by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Via Fox News Digital. 

The lawmakers stated that they are seeking to assess whether the text violates the law, writing that “all Americans can agree that our tax dollars should not be supporting direct attacks on U.S. persons based upon reasonable political disagreement.” 

Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) published a letter to GOP lawmakers on the House Appropriations Committee urging them to end U.S. support of Texty.

On Wednesday, during the House Appropriations Committee markup of the Fiscal Year 2025 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs funding bill, Banks announced that House Republicans passed a provision that would ban future funding for TEXTY. 

He called it “shameful” for U.S. agencies to use tax dollars to “collaborate with foreign groups that attempt to intimidate U.S. citizens and lawmakers.” 

The letter demands that Blinken provide information to the lawmakers by June 28 in regards to "all releasable material related to Department of State support for Anatoly Bondarenko or Texty.org;" 

“Provide a list of any Department of State directives, master agreements, or other policies that outline obligations of grantees or subgrantees of the Department relevant to the above publication,” the letter continues. “Provide a list of any grants or other awards by the Department of State to Anatoly Bondarenko or Texty.org or Texty.org.ua;" and "Inform us whether or not the Department of State is initiating any investigation into violations of Departmental policy regarding this matter."