As supporters of Ukraine make loud displays of solidarity amid Russia’s invasion – including boycotts on Russian vodka – state governments in the US are virtue signaling their own support with proposals for bans and prohibitions on the country’s exports.
A bill introduced last Friday by Massachusetts Democratic state representative Patrick Kearney calls for an outright ban on “the purchase and/or consumption by any and all consumers and entities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts of any and all product[s] made in Russia.”
It’s unclear how Kearney intends to keep residents from drinking or eating Russian-made products, but other states have proposed more practical measures, with New Hampshire’s Republican Governor Chris Sununu ordering state liquor stores to pull all Russian-made booze from their shelves. The state’s laws dictate that liquor may only be sold through government-run outlets, effectively meaning a ban across all of New Hampshire.
Similar orders were issued by the governors of Ohio and Utah, while a North Carolina state senator is pushing the NC Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to follow suit.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott stopped short of any official measure, but did call on retailers in the Lone Star state to stop selling Russian products, declaring that “Texas stands with Ukraine.”.
I’ve asked the members of the Texas Restaurant Association, Texas Package Stores Association & all Texas retailers to voluntarily remove all Russian products from their shelves.
Texas stands with Ukraine.#StandWithUkraine
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) February 26, 2022
In Pennsylvania, Governor Tom Wolf and the liquor control board instituted a ban on Russian goods, while the state’s treasury is actively working to divest from Russian companies. The legislature is seeking to codify the policy into law, though it is largely symbolic as the state’s Russia-based holdings are reported to be minimal.
While the moves are unlikely to have a noticeable impact on Russia’s economy, they highlight deep anti-Russian sentiments built up over the past decade and inflamed by Moscow’s military action in Ukraine. Following years of fake scandals ranging from Russiagate to Bountygate, Americans were primed to see Vladimir Putin as the ‘New Hitler’ – certainly not the first US ‘adversary’ alleged to be a madman resembling the Nazi leader.
