It is amazing how Democrats on Capitol Hill have suddenly become Russia hawks worried about national security. Democratic leaders like Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi cannot find enough microphones to warn us of the dangers of the Resurgent Russian Bear. The Democratic caucus has quickly turned the corner on Russia, given that the Obama Administration famously sought to “re-set” Russian relations in 2009 after, in their mind, they had “frozen over” under Bush. To add to the hovel of hypocrisy, this is the same Democrat Party that colluded with the Soviets in the 1980s to try and deny Ronald Reagan a second term.

Liberal Democrats, led by Teddy Kennedy, made overtures to top Soviet officials to try and undermine Reagan’s policy of peach through strength in the run-up to his reelection. In a May, 1983 letter to then-Soviet General Secretary Yuri Andropov, Senator Kennedy sought to “counter the militaristic policies” of President Reagan. At the time, the Massachusetts Senator was considering a second run for president, after having lost the Democratic primaries of 1980 to then-incumbent President Jimmy Carter. Kennedy was so determined to become president that he turned to an existential enemy of the United States to undermine the Republican Commander-In-Chief.

Contrast Kennedy’s actions with the huge issue the Obama Administration and congressional Democrats are making about Russia’s attempts at interference in the 2016 presidential election. While it is clear that Vladimir Putin, a murderous dictator, tried to hack both major political parties, there is no evidence at all that Russian actions affected the election’s outcome. Furthermore, in spite of their every attempt, there is no smoking gun linking the Trump Campaign to the Russian government or the KGB. There is, however, incontrovertible evidence that then-Senator Kennedy worked with the KGB in 1983, at the time that now-Russian President Vladimir Putin was an active agent.

Liberals have always viewed the Soviet Union, and now Russia, more favorably than conservatives. Soviet socialism was never as off-putting to liberals as conservatives who saw the threat clearly. The American Left did not become incensed with Russia or Putin over his heavy-handed economic policies, cronyism, or state ownership of industries; they did not view Russia as a threat until Vladimir Putin decided to oppose the LGBT agenda. Now, in the minds of the American Left, Russia is the embodiment of evil in the world.

There is no question that Putin is a threat to America. There is no question that the Russian government abuses the human rights of its citizens, certainly including LGBT individuals, and conservatives recognize this reality. It is just so politically obvious that Democrats are trying to make a bigger issue out of Russia’s interference last year than the intelligence supports. There is no evidence that Mike Pence, Jeff Sessions, Rex Tillerson, or even Donald Trump, had any sort of collusive meeting with Russian leaders. With that in mind, it is truly amazing that the party of President Obama, who famously told former Russian President Dimitry Medvedev in March, 2012 “I will have more flexibility after the election,” and of Teddy Kennedy, who colluded with the KGB to undermine Reagan, are suddenly worried about Russia.

It is these sort of political games that enrage the American public. It is this type of blatant hypocrisy that makes Americans distrust Washington. It is fine for Congress to investigate Russian attempts at interference in the 2016 elections, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions did the right thing by recusing himself from those investigations, but this faux-outrage by liberal politicians is outrageous. All Americans, regardless of party affiliation, should be outraged at any foreign power that attempts to meddle in our internal affairs. We should also be outraged, however, when opportunistic politicians seek to build-up an issue to advance their own political ambitions.