Chuck Schumer Lobbying for ‘at Least $12 Billion’ in Ukraine Aid to ‘Win the War’
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on Sunday he is requesting “at least $12 billion” in aid for Ukraine in a stop-gap spending bill.
Schumer said during a press conference on Sunday, “Ukraine has made significant advances against Russia in the war, the vicious war that Putin has waged against the Ukrainian people.”
The New York Democrat added, “I will be pushing for at least $12 billion in aid for Ukraine in the budget so they can continue to win the war effort.”
Schumer spoke ahead of a United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York on Monday. The Senate majority leader said that the additional aid would serve as a symbol that the United States would not relent in its support for Ukraine.
“And that’s another reason to make sure the Russians know more aid is coming and they’re not going to win this war because the United States will back off or turn its back on the people of Ukraine,” he explained.
“There’s been strong Ukrainian counteroffensives, but it’s only because of the weapons that we have gotten them. This is a critical time for momentum in Ukraine and Congress and the United States cannot let them down at this point in time,” Schumer said.
Schumer explained that he would like to include the aid package to Ukraine in a stop-gap spending bill. Congress must pass a stop-gap spending bill to continue funding the government. Democrats would like to pass a spending bill to fund the government through mid-December, which would give lawmakers more time to hash out a longer-term deal.
If Congress were to approve the stop-gap spending bill proposal with Ukraine aid, this would amount to more than $60 billion spent on aiding Ukraine’s fight against Russia. This occurs as Americans continue to grapple with historic inflation.
Eleven Senate Republicans and 57 House Republicans voted against the Ukraine aid package, believing it would lead to more entanglement in a foreign conflict, that Congress should not spend money while Americans deal with inflation, and that there would not be enough measures to ensure the aid would be properly appropriated.
