Senate pushes Ukrainian aid bill toward passage as GOP splinters
A bipartisan coalition of senators pushed a $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine and Israel to the brink of passage Monday night, as Republicans were bitterly divided over the bill and opponents threatened to fight it to the end.
On a 66-33 vote, the measure cleared its final hurdle before a final vote, with 17 Republicans joining nearly all Democrats in advancing the measure over the resounding objections of the majority of Republican senators, the Republican leaders in the House of Representatives and the Republican Party. the party's likely presidential nominee, Donald J. Trump. That ensured that the bill would be passed by the Senate by Wednesday.
But the measure's fate was uncertain, as Republican enemies of the legislation vowed to delay Senate approval for as long as possible, and Speaker Mike Johnson suggested he had no intention of raising the issue in the House of Representatives , where the majority of Republicans oppose continuing to send aid to Ukraine.
“House Republicans have been crystal clear from the very beginning of the discussions that any so-called additional national security legislation must recognize that national security begins at our own border,” Mr. Johnson said in a statement, adding, “In the absence of receipt of any change in Senate border policy, the House of Representatives will have to continue to exercise its own will on these important matters.”
Mr. Trump and his right-wing allies have relentlessly pressured Senate Republicans to abandon the legislation, which would provide $60.1 billion to help Ukraine fight a Russian invasion, $14.1 billion for Israeli war against Hamas and nearly $10 billion in humanitarian aid for civilians. in conflict areas, including the Palestinians in Gaza. The majority of Republicans in Congress have rejected the measure, reflecting a distaste for the party's traditional hawkish stance and a belief in projecting American power and democratic principles around the world.
Mr. Trump in particular railed against the legislation during the campaign. In recent days, he has applauded Republican senators for destroying an earlier version of the bill that included a bipartisan agreement on border security, and argued on social media that it was “stupid” for the United States to use foreign aid instead of would offer loans. Russia should “do whatever they want” against NATO members who have not spent enough money on their own defense.
But the pressure did little to erode a coalition of Republicans that has kept the relief bill moving forward.
“If things continue to be this bad in the coming years, Putin is losing,” Senator Thom Tillis, Republican of North Carolina, said of Ukraine's war effort. He argued that helping Kiev maintain battlefield pressure against President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia could weaken his rule — “and that it's damn sure worth $60 billion, or $600 billion, to get rid of him to get rid of.”
Mr. Tillis also rejected the idea that Republican voters' skepticism about the bill was a reason to oppose it.
“When people use the base as a reason to say they should oppose it, I say, I'm going to go home, show my base some respect, dispel the rumors and talk about the facts,” he said. “And then I don't have a basic problem.”
Many Republicans who oppose the bill argue that it prioritizes foreign conflicts over the threat that a large influx of migrants poses to the United States. That's despite their vote last week to end a version of the legislation that tied aid to stricter border enforcement measures by limiting asylum laws, increasing detention capacity and speeding up deportations.
“There is a literal invasion coming across our border,” Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, said on the floor Monday. “And all they could do in the Senate was collect the money, take the pallets of money, load the planes, prepare the champagne and fly to Kiev.”
Other Republican opponents have insisted it would be foolish to send Ukraine the tens of billions of dollars included in the bill, questioning whether Kiev could ever gain the upper hand against Russia.
Mr. Putin is “an evil war criminal, but he will not lose,” said Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, adding that “the continuation of this war is destroying Ukraine.”
And in a memo to colleagues, Senator J.D. Vance, Republican of Ohio, suggested that the entire bill was designed to jeopardize Trump's ability to cut off aid to Kiev in the future if he wins the election.
“The supplement represents an attempt by the foreign policy blob/deep state to prevent President Trump from enacting his desired policies,” Mr. Vance wrote, adding that Democrats were trying to “provide grounds to impeach him and to undermine his government.”
Democrats warned Republicans that a vote against the foreign aid bill would only help Russia defeat Ukraine on the battlefield and come back to haunt them.
“The whole world will remember what the Senate does in the coming days,” Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and majority leader, said on the floor. “If some people think Putin is just going to quit Ukraine, if they think it's somehow better to reason with him, appease him, listen to him, then these modern-day Neville Chamberlains are ignoring the warnings of history: the appetites of autocrats are infinite.”
Republicans have insisted for months that they would not vote for military aid to Ukraine unless Congress — or President Biden — also takes steps to crack down on the wave of migration across the southwest border. But when the death of the border law reignited the debate over Ukraine, some Republicans turned around and backed aid to Kiev.
“I know it has become quite fashionable in some quarters to ignore the global interests that we have as a world power, to deplore the responsibilities of global leadership,” said Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and Minority Leader, in the hall on Sunday: he rejected the anti-Ukrainian faction of his party. “This is vain work for vain minds, and it has no place in the United States Senate.”
Republican opponents of the bill were also still pushing for the opportunity to make proposals to amend the bill, but as of Monday afternoon, Democrats and Republicans had been unable to reach a deal to do so.
“We haven't even been able to pass a single amendment,” Senator Mike Lee, Republican of Utah, complained in a lengthy tirade on the floor Monday, arguing that the process was “not fair.”