Achi news desk-
WASHINGTON –
The US House is preparing in a rare Saturday session to approve US$95 billion in foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and other US allies, with Democrats and Republicans joining together behind the legislation on after a months-long hard-fought battle for renewed American support to repel Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. .
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, putting his job on the line, was counting on Democratic support this week to set up a series of votes on three aid bills, as well as a fourth that includes several other foreign policy proposals. If the votes are successful, the package will go to the Senedd, where a trip in the next few days is almost certain. President Joe Biden has promised to sign it immediately.
Passage through the House would clear the biggest hurdle to Biden’s funding request, first made in October as Ukraine’s military supplies began to run low. The GOP-controlled House, which was skeptical of US support for Ukraine, struggled for months over what to do, first insisting that any aid be tied to policy changes in the US order -Mexico, just to reject an immediate bipartisan Senate proposal like that. .
Reaching the end of the game has been a crushing boost for Johnson who has proven his resolve and support among Republicans, with a small but growing number now openly calling for his removal from the speaker’s office. Yet congressional leaders are casting the votes as a turning point in history – an urgent sacrifice as US allies are besieged by wars and threats from continental Europe to the Middle East to Asia.
“The only thing that has stopped terrorists and tyrants is the perception of a strong America, that we would stand strong,” Johnson said this week. “And we will. I think Congress is going to show that. This is a very important message that we are going to send to the world.”
Still, Congress has seen a flurry of world leaders visit in recent months, from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, all but pleading with lawmakers to approve the aid . Globally, the delay left many questioning America’s commitment to its allies.
At stake has also been one of Biden’s main foreign policy priorities – stopping the development of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Europe. After holding quiet talks with Johnson, the president quickly approved Johnson’s plan this week, paving the way for Democrats to lend their meager support to clear the procedural hurdles needed for a final vote.
“It is high time we supported our democratic allies in Israel, Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific and provided humanitarian aid to civilians at risk in theaters of conflict such as Gaza, Haiti and Sudan,” said the House Democratic leader. Hakeem Jeffries. at a news conference on Friday.
Voting on the package is likely to create unusual alliances in the House. While aid to Ukraine is likely to win a majority in both parties, a significant number of progressive Democrats are expected to vote against the measure which aids Israel as they demand an end to the bombing of Gaza which has killed thousands of civilians.
At the same time, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is well ahead of the fight, leaning in from afar through social media releases and direct phone calls with lawmakers as he steers the GOP into a more isolationist stance with ‘to “America First” brand of politics. At one point, the defense of Ukraine had solid, bipartisan support in Congress, but as the war enters its third year, a majority of Republicans oppose further aid.
At one point in the months-long slog to get Ukraine aid through Congress, Trump’s opposition essentially doomed a bipartisan Senate proposal on border security. This past week, Trump also published a social media post that questioned why European nations were not giving Ukraine more money, although he spared Johnson criticism and said Ukraine’s survival was important.
Still, the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus has derided the legislation as the “America Last” foreign wars package and urged lawmakers to defy Republican leadership and oppose it because the bills do not include border security measures.
Johnson’s grip on the speaker’s gift has also become thinner in recent days as three Republicans, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, have backed a “leave motion” that may lead to a vote on the speaker’s removal. . A few more were expected to join soon, said Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who is urging Johnson to step aside voluntarily.
The speaker’s office has been working furiously to drum up support for the bill, as well as for Johnson, R-La. He organized a series of press calls in the run-up to the final votes on the package, first with Jewish leaders, then with Christian groups, to show support for the speaker and the legislation he is introducing to the floor
Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, said it is high time the United States “do something to support Israel, fight Vladimir Putin and stand up to China. “
“Coming together like this reminds us of the old days when foreign policy had bipartisan support,” he said.
The package includes a number of Republican priorities that Democrats approve of, or at least are willing to accept. These include proposals allowing the United States to seize frozen Russian central bank assets to rebuild Ukraine; imposing sanctions on Iran, Russia, China and criminal organizations that traffic in fentanyl; and legislation to require the owner of the popular Chinese video app TikTok to sell its stake within a year or face a US ban.
Still, the effort to get the bills through Congress is a reflection not only of politics, but reality on the ground in Ukraine. Top lawmakers on national security committees, accustomed to classified briefings, have become very concerned about the situation in recent weeks. Russia has increasingly used satellite-guided glide bombs – which allow aircraft to drop them from a safe distance – to pummel Ukrainian forces suffering from troop and ammunition shortages.
“I really believe the intelligence and the briefings we’ve had,” Johnson said, adding, “I think Vladimir Putin would continue to march through Europe if he was allowed to .”
A former ambassador to Ukraine under President George W. Bush, John Herbst, said the months-long delay in approving more American aid had undoubtedly hurt Ukrainian soldiers on the battlefield.
But it’s not too late yet, Herbst added. “The fact that it is coming now means that disaster has been averted.”
