The scene in Congress was a striking display of action after months of dysfunction and stalemate fuelled by Republicans,who hold the majority but are deeply split over foreign aid,particularly for Ukraine. Johnson relied on Democrats to ensure the military and humanitarian funding – the first major package for Ukraine since December 2022 – won approval.
The morning opened with a sombre and serious debate and an unusual sense of purpose as Republican and Democratic leaders united to urge quick approval,saying that would ensure the United States supported its allies and remained a leader on the world stage. The House’s visitor galleries were crowded with onlookers.
The 155mm artillery shell is one of the most in demand in Ukraine.Credit:AP
“The eyes of the world are upon us,and history will judge what we do here and now,” said Republican Representative for Texas Michael McCaul,the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Passage through the House cleared away 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 struggled for months over what to do,first demanding that any assistance for Ukraine be tied to policy changes at the US-Mexico border,only to immediately reject a bipartisan Senate offer along those very lines.
Reaching an endgame has been an excruciating lift for Johnson that has tested both his resolve and his support among Republicans,with a small but growing number now openly urging his removal from the Speaker’s office. Yet congressional leaders cast the votes as a turning point in history – an urgent sacrifice as US allies are beleaguered by wars and threats from continental Europe to the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific.
“Sometimes when you are living history,as we are today,you don’t understand the significance of the actions of the votes that we make on this House floor,of the effect that it will have down the road,” said New York Representative Gregory Meeks,the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “This is a historic moment.”
Opponents,particularly the hard-right Republicans from Johnson’s majority,argued that the US should focus on the home front,addressing domestic border security and the nation’s rising debt load,and they warned against spending more money,which largely flows to American defence manufacturers,to produce weaponry used overseas.
At stake has been one of Biden’s top foreign policy priorities – halting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s advance in Europe. After engaging in quiet talks with Johnson,the president quickly endorsed Johnson’s plan,paving the way for Democrats to give their rare support to clear the procedural hurdles needed for a final vote.
“We have a responsibility,not as Democrats or Republicans,but as Americans to defend democracy wherever it is at risk,” Jeffries said during the debate.
The package included several Republican priorities that Democrats endorsed,or at least are willing to accept. Those include proposals that allow the US to seize frozen Russian central bank assets to rebuild Ukraine;impose sanctions on Iran,Russia,China and criminal organisations that traffic fentanyl;and legislation to require the China-based owner of the popular video app TikTok to sell its stake within a year or face a ban in the United States.
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Still,the all-out push to get the bills through Congress is a reflection not only of politics,but realities on the ground in Ukraine. Top lawmakers on national security committees,who are privy to classified briefings,have grown gravely concerned about the tide of the war as Russia pummels Ukrainian forces beset by a shortage of troops and ammunition.