Congressional leaders reached a bipartisan deal early Wednesday providing USD 13.6 billion to help Ukraine and European allies plus billions more to battle the pandemic as part of an overdue USD 1.5 trillion measure financing federal agencies for the rest of this year.
Though a tiny fraction of the massive bill, the money countering a Russian blitzkrieg that's devastated parts of Ukraine and prompted Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II ensured robust bipartisan support for the legislation. President Joe Biden requested USD 10 billion for military, humanitarian and economic aid last week, and Democratic and Republican backing was so staunch that the figure grew to $12 billion Monday and USD 13.6 billion just a day later.
“We're going to support them against tyranny, oppression, violent acts of subjugation," Biden said at the White House.
Party leaders planned to whip the 2,741-page measure through the House on Wednesday and the Senate by week's end, though that chamber's exact timing was unclear. Lawmakers were spurred by the urgency of helping Ukraine before Russia's military might makes it too late.
They also faced a Friday deadline to approve the government-wide spending measure or face a weekend election-year federal shutdown. As a backstop against delays, the House planned to pass a bill Wednesday keeping agencies afloat through March 15.
Over USD 4 billion of the Ukraine aid was to help the country and Eastern European nations cope with the 2 million refugees who've already fled the fighting. Another USD 6.7 billion was for the deployment of U.S. Troops and equipment to the region and to transfer American military items to Ukraine and U.S. Allies, and there was economic aid and money to enforce economic sanctions against Russia as well.
“War in Europe has focused the energies of Congress to getting something done and getting it done fast,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said the measure would provide loan guarantees to Poland to help it replace aircraft it is sending Ukraine. “It's been like pulling teeth” to get Democrats to agree to some of the defense spending, he said. But he added, “It's an important step. It needs to be passed. It needs to be passed quickly.”
The bipartisan rallying behind the Ukraine aid was just one manifestation of Congress' eagerness to help the beleaguered country, though not all of it has been harmonious.
Republicans accused Biden of moving too slowly to help Ukraine and NATO nations assisting it, and to impose sanctions against Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin. They've also used the crisis to amplify their years-long drive to ease drilling restrictions on federal lands and to oppose Democrats' attempts to curb carbon-heavy fuels that worsen climate change. Democrats said time was needed to bring along European allies that rely heavily on Russian energy sources. They also countered that plenty of drilling is available on nonfederal lands. A bipartisan push to ban Russian oil imports had grown perhaps unstoppable before Biden announced Tuesday that he would do that on his own.