Senior US lawmaker anticipates Ukraine aid bill to be brought to the floor after Easter
The Republican who leads the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Representative Michael McCaul, said on March 24 that he anticipates Speaker Mike Johnson to introduce a Ukraine aid bill after Easter, even though it may pose a risk of losing support for a leadership vote against him.
“His commitment is to put it on the floor after Easter,” McCaul mentioned during his appearance on CBS "Face the Nation" program.
The U.S. Senate approved a $95 billion funding package on Feb. 13 that contained $60 billion in aid for Ukraine, but it still faces an uphill battle in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Acknowledging the challenging position Speaker Johnson is in, McCaul noted the possibility of the Louisiana Republican being removed from his speakership following a motion filed by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene last week, triggered by Johnson's reliance on Democratic support to pass a $1.2 trillion government funding deal.
U.S. President Joe Biden reminded the urgency of aiding Ukraine after signing the $1.2 trillion funding bill on March 23, saying that "Congress's work isn't finished."
"The House must pass the bipartisan national security supplemental to advance our national security interests," Biden said in a statement.
During his surprise visit to Kyiv on March 20, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan vowed that the United States would deliver a $60 billion aid package to Ukraine despite its current impasse in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
"We are confident we will get this done. We will get this aid to Ukraine," Sullivan said at a press conference in Kyiv alongside Ukraine's Presidential Office Head Andriy Yermak.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
