Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell publicly championed President Joe Biden’s push to bundle aid to Ukraine and Israel together while also hoping for a “functional” House.
Biden delivered his second inaugural Oval Office speech last Thursday to drum up support for a proposed $106 billion White House package that includes $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel and $30.1 billion for other projects such as border security.
“That’s right. No Americans were killed in Ukraine. We’re rebuilding our industrial base. Ukraine is destroying the military of one of our biggest rivals. I have a hard time finding anything wrong with that,” said McConnell (R- Ky.) to CBS’ “Face the Nation” in an interview that aired Sunday.
Dozens of Republican lawmakers in the House and Senate have publicly pleaded with the Biden administration to separate aid to Israel and Ukraine.
In particular, critics have been outraged about aid to war-torn Ukraine, while largely supporting aid to Israel. Congress has authorized more than $113 billion to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022, though not all of that money has been sent.
“I think that’s a mistake,” McConnell said of the GOP call. “I know there are some Republicans in the Senate, and probably even more in the House, saying Ukraine is somehow different. I see it as all interconnected.”
Mitch McConnell greeted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his visit to Capitol Hill last month. Shutterstock
“We have great power competition from China, and Russia and we still have a terrorism problem,” McConnell speculated. “So I think it needs a worldwide approach rather than trying to take a piece out of it.”
The 81-year-old Kentucky lawmaker played down concerns that Europe is not doing its part to support Ukraine in its fight to deter Russian aggressors.
“They’ve done almost 90 billion dollars, they’ve housed a bunch of refugees who ran away. I think NATO allies in Europe have done a lot,” he said.
The president delivered an inaugural address from the Oval Office last week to drum up support for the additional request.POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Last week, McConnell hinted at support for the White House’s expected package, but he left open the possibility that the GOP might “make proposals to fix it if that’s necessary.”
“Not domestically, but on this issue that we’re talking about today, we’re generally in the same place,” McConnell quipped when asked about having a lot in common with Biden.
One area of foreign policy where McConnell contrasts sharply with Biden is Iran.
“You can’t on one side, negotiate with Iran on some kind of nuclear deal that you know they’re not going to keep, and then turn around and declare that you’re going to be tougher on Iran,” he said.
The top Republican in the Senate has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine even as his party grows wary of continued aid.Getty Images
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also strongly supports the addition, making the House of Representatives the biggest hurdle.
The lower house has been without a speaker since Oct. 3 when eight Republicans joined with a large Democratic majority to oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)
“I hope we’ll have a speaker in the near future,” McConnell said plainly. “We need one because the House cannot do anything without a speaker. And it’s a problem.”
“I am not an expert in the House. I have my hands full here in the National Assembly, and we will do our job and hope that the Assembly can function here in the near future,” he added.
Since McCarthy’s ouster, Republicans have scrambled to unify the caucus and field a speaker, but to no avail. Without a speaker, the House cannot take legislation seriously for consideration.
In addition to the war raging in Ukraine and Israel, Congress is looking forward to the upcoming November 17 deadline to avoid a government shutdown.
Congress has suffered paralysis with the House having no speaker.REUTERS
McConnell has refrained from throwing his weight behind specific contenders, and has stuck to publicly telling House Republicans to get their act together.
In recent months, the Kentucky lawmaker has faced questions about his own leadership abilities following a series of health scares including several public freezing events.
McConnell clapped one hand and paused mid-sentence during a public press event in July, then again in August.
That comes after on March 8, he suffered a concussion and fractured ribs after falling during a fundraiser at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Washington.
There are reports of additional stumbling.
“I’m fine. I’m fully recovered, and I’m fine,” McConnell told CBS. “I’m fine, fully recovered and back to work.”
Mitch McConnell has led the Republican Senate since 2007. Getty Images
His office has been tight-lipped about what actually happened and McConnell doesn’t seem eager to provide more details.
“I think we should be talking about what we talked about before, not my health,” he said.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
