Republicans prepare to derail bipartisan Ukraine aid deal - Financial Times
According to The Financial Times, a bipartisan deal backed by US President Joe Biden to provide Ukraine with multibillion-dollar aid along with stricter immigration policies is facing growing resistance from Republicans in Congress, posing a serious threat to its approval.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to UNIAN.
The FT notes that the bill, agreed by representatives of the Democratic and Republican parties in the Senate, may be the last chance for the Biden administration to obtain new military support for Ukraine in its defence against Russian invasion - along with other national security goals, including assistance to Israel and Taiwan.
"It also represents a rare compromise in efforts to curb immigration across the U.S.-Mexico border, including restrictions on asylum, which has been a rallying cry for Republicans and a political liability for Democrats throughout the Biden presidency," the article says.
The media outlet recalls that the bipartisan agreement was "destroyed" by former President Donald Trump - the Republican presidential frontrunner tried to torpedo the latest breakthrough again on Monday, just days before the Senate was scheduled to vote on the deal. In particular, Trump wrote on social media that the bill "is a wonderful gift for Democrats and a death wish for the Republican Party".
"Within hours of the publication, leading Republicans in the House of Representatives, who must also approve the bill to make it law, issued a joint statement saying that 'any consideration of this bill in the Senate in its current form is a waste of time,'" the media outlet reports.
The publication clarifies that the first legislative hurdle for the bill will be the Senate, which is expected to vote on Wednesday, and it will need the support of 60 out of 100 senators.
"At least 12 of the 49 Republican senators overall must support the bill for it to move forward, as some Democrats are also expected to vote against it because they see the border measures as too draconian. But the criticism from some Republican lawmakers has been fierce - and seems to doom its prospects," the article says.
The newspaper reports that as of Tuesday morning, at least 21 Republican senators had announced that they would vote against the bill, meaning it will fail, and this "will mark the latest blow to traditional Republican foreign policy hawks and political pragmatists who supported the bipartisan breakthrough," including Mitch McConnell, the party's Senate leader. On Monday, he urged Republicans to support a package that would help the US and its allies "regain the upper hand" over the "emerging authoritarian axis" in Moscow, Beijing and Tehran. "Now his future as a leader may be in jeopardy," the authors of the article believe.
According to the FT, the Democrats and the White House are also holding out hope that the deal could at least pass the Senate.
"The question now is whether senators can drown out the outside noise, drown out people like Donald Trump who want chaos, and do the right thing for America," said Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate Majority Leader.
As a reminder, the Senate has prepared a bipartisan bill based on the US President's request for additional funding for national security needs, including support for Ukraine and Israel, totalling $118 billion. The document provides for $60.1 billion to help Ukraine, $14.1 billion for Israel, and $20.2 billion to strengthen security at the US border.
