Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Thursday that it's his responsibility to steer the Republican Party's response against Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Driving the news: "I think we have a moral obligation. We have a strategic obligation. It is in our best interest to be helping the Ukrainians and I think they're an inspiration to all of us," McConnell said during an exclusive interview with Axios national political correspondent Jonathan Swan.
McConnell also said Thursday that it's his job to "lead public opinion in different directions."
"I expect that most Americans wouldn't have been able to find Ukraine on a map two months ago. This is a development that they're now watching. They're watching these atrocities," McConnell said.