Finally: Speaker McCarthy says border is bigger priority than Ukraine

Miranda Nazzaro
The Hill
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 21:20 UTC

© Greg Nash

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) arrives for a press conference on Friday, September 29, 2023

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Sunday said he's committed to helping Ukraine, but that addressing the crisis at the border is a bigger priority.

"The priority for me is America and our borders," McCarthy said when pressed during an interview on CBS's Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan about Ukraine. "Now, I support being able to make sure Ukraine has the weapons that they need, but I firmly support the border first. So we've got to find a way that we can do this together."

Ukraine was a big loser in the stopgap measure approved by Congress in a dramatic weekend vote that prevented a government shutdown.

More than $6 billion in aid to the war-torn country had been included in a Senate stopgap measure, but McCarthy in a surprise Saturday move brought legislation to the floor that funded the government but did not include aid to Ukraine.

A number of House Republicans oppose aid to Ukraine, which has been a priority for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other Republicans. The Senate GOP, itself divided over Ukraine, agreed to the McCarthy plan.

The back-and-forth is increasing pressure on Congress to do something for Ukraine now, though McCarthy on Sunday made it clear he's more focused on the border.

When pressed over the White House's argument that it does not have enough money for Ukraine, McCarthy said, "They have more than $3 billion dollars right now to help them to get through it. If they have some challenge, we can sit down and we can talk about that."

"But the American border matters and more Americans are dying on our border than Americans are dying in Ukraine," McCarthy continued.

Asked if he is linking Ukraine aid to a border bill vote, McCarthy replied that the American border "matters."

"They're [Ukraine] not going to get some big package if the border is not secure," McCarthy said. "..We will work with people in need, but the one thing the White House has to understand they better be prepared to secure American border."

Miranda Nazzaro is a breaking news reporter for The Hill.

Comment: Brave words. It remains to be seen McCarthy and other America-First Republicans can follow through. The backroom pressure must be enormous.

RT reports:

US President Joe Biden has urged Congress to "stop playing games" and vote on a separate aid package for Ukraine as soon as possible, after funding for Kiev was dropped from a stopgap bill that averted a government shutdown.

Speaking from the White House on Sunday after signing the last-minute package, Biden said he expected Republican House Speaker Keven McCarthy to "keep his commitment to secure passage and support needed to help Ukraine."

"We have time, not much time, and there's an overwhelming sense of urgency... Stop playing games, get this done," Biden said.

"I want to assure our American allies and the American people and the people of Ukraine that you can count on our support. We will not walk away," he added.

Several prominent lawmakers in the US are demanding stronger safeguards against the misuse of funds and supplies sent to Kiev, and recent efforts to approve aid in Congress have proven difficult.

[...]

Washington has provided Ukraine with at least $46 billion in military supplies alone since February 2022, in addition to other aid.

The head of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, Aleksey Danilov, has suggested that the West should tell Kiev exactly how long it is planning to support it, as Kiev's backers have been unable to clearly define what their "as long as it takes" pledge means.

The EU top diplomat, Josep Borrell, has insisted that the bloc's military aid to Ukraine will not depend on decisions taken by the US. Brussels plans to continue increase its military assistance to the Ukrainian forces, Borrell told journalists during his visit to Kiev on Sunday.