By Ray Hanania

Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin wants to restore the “grandeur” of the old Soviet Union. Over his past 22 years in power, he has done everything to reverse the move towards democracy that began with the resignation of Mikhail Gorbachev and presidency of Boris Yeltsin on Christmas Day 1991.

President Biden has been excessively cautious and may have given Putin the green light to invade when he said a military option to stop Putin was not on the table. Biden assured Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy he would “respond decisively,” saying sanctions would be the toughest ever.

The threat of going to war is often the greatest deterrent for war. But once Putin knew neither the U.S. nor NATO would respond militarily to an invasion, he invaded on Feb. 24.

Biden’s response has been weak. They say former President Donald Trump would be tougher, but Trump’s rhetoric has been embarrassing, praising tyrant Putin as “tough” and “savvy.”

Worse is the rhetoric from Putin, who called Zelenskyy (who is Jewish) a “neo-Nazi.” Putin has threatened to kill Zelenskyy’s family and families of Ukrainian soldiers.

Biden needs to be tougher. He needs to impose sanctions at every level. File war crimes charges against Putin and Russia. Expel Russia from the U.N.

Suspend and end all cooperation with Russia–including space exploration–as long as Putin is president. Pursue regime change in Russia and more strongly support the insurgents in Russia.

Sanction Russia’s new Communist network including Lebanon, Serbia and Venezuela, as well as Pakistan, Iran, Syria, Crimea, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Belarus, with support from Iran, North Korea and even China.

We did nothing when Putin invaded Georgia in 2008 and Crimea in 2014. When he attacked Kazakhstan two months ago, a prelude to the invasion of Ukraine. Putin revived the term “Domino Theory.”

If we don’t take Putin out today, we will be dealing with far worse events in the near future. Are we the leader of the free world or are we just enjoying the title?

Ukraine is important, the second largest country in Europe next to Russia itself. What happens in Ukraine directly affects our future. We don’t want to go to war. But we can never let anyone believe we won’t go to war to defend the free world from tyranny.

THE POLITICAL GRAPEVINE: Troubles for Congresswoman Marie Newman mount. Newman is a centrist, one of the strongest advocates for Israel’s security and Palestinian justice, in a district with the largest Palestinian population.

Ironically, her troubles come right from Palestinian activists who have caused her so much damage with selfish choices: Iyman Chehade, a candidate in the new 3rd District who sued her, and Rush Darwish, who ran against her and divided the Arab vote.

If Newman loses to Congressman Sean Casten, who has received more than $30,000 from the extremist AIPAC lobby, it will be on their shoulders … Chicago Alderman Gilbert Villegas is leading in fundraising and support in the fight for the Democratic nomination in the new 3rd District … Secretary of State Jesse White, who has raised so many fees and made life difficult for motorists, has created a massive battle to succeed him when he endorsed Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia as his successor over Alexi Giannoulis. Giannoulis has the backing of the Cook County Democratic Party and Toni Preckwinkle, while Valencia also has Pritzker. No election will have a greater impact on Illinois voters …

Richard Irvin became mayor of Aurora in 2017 and has enforced one of the toughest crackdowns on street gang crimes. He’s running for the Republican nomination for governor against JB Pritzker. Every time I hear TV commercials by Irvin, a military veteran, his words resonate with me and I am sure with every citizen who believes that not enough is being done to stop crime. With officials like Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx making life easy for the criminals, we need someone who is taking crime serious. Irvin is backed by Republican Ken Griffin, who has 10 times more funds that Pritzker. So excessive wealth is not an issue. The biggest complaint is from the news media, arguing he hasn’t taken their questions or held press conferences. The same news media that is silent on President Joe Biden, who has held fewer press conferences than any previous president. But this is a midterm election and the party out of the White House, the Republicans, will see a voter surge … if you are looking for a real depth on Illinois politics, check out Shia Kapos‘ daily “Illinois Playbook” at Politico.

Check out Ray Hanania’s columns and political podcasts at hanania.com.