A fight is brewing between lawmakers who want to send more money to Ukraine and House Speaker Mike Johnson, The Washington Times warns. As the publication notes, the speaker of the lower house of Congress has never brought the issue of aid to other nations to a vote despite pressure. As a result, alternative bills on aid to Kiev are appearing in Congress and there are threats of resignation against Johnson.
A fight is brewing between lawmakers who want to funnel more money to Ukraine and House Speaker Mike Johnson, who never brought the issue of aid to other nations to a vote despite pressure, The Washington Times warns.
Members of the Speaker’s team have made it clear that Johnson wants to wait until Congress completes its cycle of approving government spending for fiscal year 2024 before moving on to a bill on aid to other countries and border security. That means congressmen could revisit the issue after March 22.
The Speaker’s resistance in the House gave birth to two alternative proposals: a trimmed $66bn aid package for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific region from moderate Republicans Don Bacon of Nebraska and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and from House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Michael McCaul. In doing so, Fitzpatrick is threatening Johnson with a resignation petition that would allow bills to be brought to the floor for a vote without the Speaker’s approval.