Volodymyr Zelensky is gonna need all of the skills he had as a entertainment performer before becoming the leader of a country in a fight for territory against a country MUCH bigger than his….
While the American congress is NOT against sending aid…
The politics of the House RightWingNuts is causing problems…
They are insistent that there be US Southern Border enforcement add-ons of the severity that US Senate Democrats and President Biden will NOT accept…..There will be some sort of agreement in the end and despite the media stories….
The US IS still sending some money to Ukraine…
But?
The message that IS being sent to the Ukraine President IS that at some point?
You ARE gonna have to cut a deal with Russia’s Putin to end the conflict….
The fate of billions in assistance for Ukraine remains in limbo Monday morning even as President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to make a crucial pitch to senators and House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday.
Zelensky’s visit to Washington – his third since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 – is unlikely to shift a now cemented dynamic in Washington that Republicans, even those that back additional funding for Ukraine, aren’t willing to do more unless Democrats and the White House concede on major policy changes on the US southern border.
It’s a complicated moment for the White House, which has made the case again and again that Zelensky and his country are at a critical inflection point in their fight for Democracy. And yet, President Joe Biden’s administration may not be able to deliver the resources it has promised if a domestic, decades-long fight over immigration doesn’t rapidly yield a breakthrough soon.
Bottom Line: It’s more likely than not that Congress leaves at the end of this week without having passed additional aid, without a breakthrough on border policy and without a clear roadmap of how to ensure the funding passes in the thorny months ahead when a showdown over government spending, an impeachment inquiry and the presidential election are in full swing.
How much money is actually left?
As CNN reported last week, there is just about $2 billion still available in the eyes of the administration the US can send out. There is $4.8 billion left in the presidential drawdown authority, but that funding is used to send existing US stockpiles to Ukraine and the US only has about $1 billion left to replenish those stockpiles. There is then about $1 billion left in intelligence and defense surveillance funds.
What to watch
Zelensky’s crucial meetings on Capitol Hill with Senators: Senators are well aware of the dynamics on the battlefield, Ukraine’s dire needs and the implications of congressional inaction could have on the long-term outlook of Democracy in Europe and around the world. It was the topic of a classified briefing last week and an issue that leaders on both sides don’t deny. Republicans like Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, GOP Whip John Thune and other leaders like Sen. John Cornyn of Texas talk about it all of the time, but that has done little to impact their view that border security has to be part of any package for additional aid. Does that shift, soften or change? Not likely…..
Update….
Punchbowl News: “Republican senators told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday that they would continue to object to billions of dollars in new military aid for his embattled country until a bipartisan agreement is reached on border security.”
“It was the clearest signal to date that Ukraine isn’t likely to get any additional help soon from its most important ally in the 20-month war with Russia…”
“It all comes as both parties cast serious doubt about the Senate’s ability to clinch a deal before leaving town for the holidays. The House and Senate are both scheduled to go on recess at the end of the week.”