Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign says he was 'talking quickly' and 'kind of oscillated in his words'...

"He was talking quickly and kind of oscillated in his words," spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told The New York Times. McLaughlin said Ramaswamy was referencing a widely criticized episode in which Canadian lawmakers celebrated a Ukrainian WWII veteran that served in a Nazi division during Zelenskyy's visit.

Ramaswamy was responding to a question about Zelenskyy pushing for more US aid for Ukraine. Like a growing number of Republicans, Ramaswamy opposes further aid to Ukraine. Ramaswamy has also taken issue with the Ukrainian Parliament banning the Orthodox Church over possible ties to Russia.

"Level with the American people here, Ukraine is not a paragon of democracy," Ramaswamy said during the debate. "This is a country that has banned 11 opposition parties. It has consolidated all media into one state, TV media arm — that is not democratic. It has threatened not to hold elections this year unless the US forks over more money — that is not democratic." (Zelenskyy banned the parties due to suspected ties to Moscow. He has defended not holding elections by saying the nation needs to focus its resources on the war.)