There is a very interesting set of responses that Tucker Carlson obtained from most of the 2024 GOP candidates for President who have made clear they're in the game.  The specific topic was Ukraine and US foreign policy related to same.

Pay attention Washington, because the front-runners -- which means the most-likely set (collectively) of those on the ballot in another 18 months are all saying "Nope, nope and NOPE!" on the US "backing" the Ukraine position -- and instead marking China as the place to focus.

They're right by the way.

The vehemence with which they damn our current policy varies; of note Pence is still a warhawk and actually believes we have the right to dictate terms when it comes to Russia's government -- not just in THEIR foreign policy but as to who leads their nation.  Oh sure, he tries to couch this as "ask the thousands of Russians jailed in Russia" but perhaps Mr. Pence would like me to ask all the January 6th defendants how they feel about regime change in both the White House and whether the same sanction should be enforced against the preceding government, including him personally and his family.  

Why am I reasonably-certain that were I to take such a poll he wouldn't like the results?

The bottom line folks is that the so-called "GOP" within DC today believes as does Pence, but only when it comes to other governments.  Beyond our borders we should poll their political prisoners and then act as they direct.  Of course he would not last five minutes without swinging from a rope were we to ask our political prisoners the same question and that is out-of-bounds, naturally.

This, by the way, is not a unique position in history.  Indeed essentially every tyrant through the ages has taken the exact same position.  Stalin, Mao, Hitler (yeah, I know, Godwin's law) and more.  How about the King of England circa 1770?

The point that should be made here is that unlike those governments we at least pay lip service, at the present time, to the people having the right to set such direction and either endorse or repudiate it.  We hold elections in which said choices are allegedly made.  As things stand right now the GOP "in power in DC" is wildly out-of-sync with the Presidential candidates who, between them, have a near-certain lock on the nomination in the coming months.

Now how the population feels about this as a whole might be a different matter.  Or then again it might not.  Plenty of people think Putin is a thug (I'm one of them) but when it comes to taking a 20% pay cut in real terms on a durable, permanent basis, losing the ability to heat their homes, feed their families or even running the risk of glowing in the dark as a result of a nuclear war I suspect sentiments are a wee bit different than the DC table-pounders with regard to regime change.

Yes, Russia may be a nation with a modest GDP that exports black goo to the world in order to stay alive but it is a nation with a modest GDP that exports black goo and happens to have many thousands of nuclear devices on the business end of missiles and torpedoes both on land and sea.  If sufficiently threatened with political extinction I would expect them to use those rather than die in peace and if you don't you're more than a bit crazy.

Those (like Pence) who think Russia is the schoolyard bully who threatens but doesn't have a pistol under his jacket are even more-insane.  He knows the weapons are real, of course, as does everyone else, and for anyone to believe that a sovereign nation will simply fold to an outside influence rather than use whatever they have when facing their own political extinction due to said outside influence is to be imbued with a God Complex that should, in a Representative Republic, be an instant and permanent disqualifier from any high office in this land.

Why?

Because if you believe this then you must acquiesce under the principle of "All humans are created equal and are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights" to extend to those other nations and if it is our place to tell them what is "acceptable" in a government and remove by force those who deem not to be then the exact same principle applies to those other nations.

In other words if you hold this principle then you are endorsing Putin assassinating not just the present government (all of said government, including Congress, the Justices of the Supreme Court and the Executive) but also yourself ex-ante before the election!

Oh this "right", which you arrogate to yourself and the United States, does not just extend to Putin.

It also extends to Xi, never mind every other leader of every other nation.

That's madness, and in a world of nuclear hellfire madness can indeed lead to you glowing in the dark.

We would be wise to reject that with finality.