C’mon Senators, pass the bill and help Ukraine before Christmas!

Americans, Ukrainians, and our partners will thank you for advancing their security interests

For us Americans who care about Ukraine, this week was disappointing. Tragically, the U.S. Senate failed to pass a new supplemental bill that would have provided $60 billion in additional assistance to Ukraine (as well as important new aid to Israel). By all accounts, a solid majority of U.S. Senators support new aid to Ukraine. The bill stalled, however, when Republican senators tried to add amendments to the bill that would fundamentally change our immigration laws. As they probably already knew, these amendments were unacceptable to the Biden Administration and Democratic senators.

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer op September 21, 2023. Source: President of Ukraine

I am not an expert on either immigration or “logrolling” in the U.S. Congress. As an observer, however, it does seem that the immigration system needs improvement. Most importantly, if we are going to compete with China over the next century, we must figure out ways to continue to attract the best and brightest from around the world. Historically, this has been one of the defining sources of U.S. power. Demographic trends in the U.S. also highlight a need for more immigration. We need the best and the brightest and we need more blue-collar and service sector workers to sustain economic growth. Reforming and streamlining our migration policies and procedures are crucial in doing that. Making our asylum processes more efficient and fairer seems logical too.

But must we hold aid to Ukraine hostage to have that debate? My answer is an emphatic “No!” The stakes in Ukraine are too immediate and too dire. If the U.S. Congress does not approve new aid to Ukraine this month, more Ukrainian soldiers are going to die next month. They will not have the ammunition to fire back at their invaders. Next month, more Ukrainian civilians will also die because air defense missiles are in short supply. That would be truly tragic and shameful.

As I wrote about in Foreign Policy last month, “The Case for Supporting Ukraine is Crystal Clear.” It is clearly in the security interests of the United States and our allies in Europe and Asia to stop Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and degrade the military capabilities of the Russian army. Putin’s victory in Ukraine will lead to greater threats from Russia to our allies in Europe, embolden Xi to invade Taiwan, and more generally make the United States look weak and unreliable to allies and partners all over the world.

Moreover, as Marc Thiessen has written in The Washington Post, out of $68 million that the U.S. provided as military aid to Ukraine, nearly 90 percent of that money went directly to “American defense companies that employ American workers to produce the weapons systems that Ukraine is using to fight Russia.” Thiessen’s team identified 117 production lines in 31 states and 71 cities, which means that by providing military aid to Ukraine, the U.S. government is not only advancing its national security interests but also creating manufacturing jobs across the country and revitalizing and modernizing production of older weapons systems. For instance, as Thiessen states at the What the Hell Is Going On? podcast, the U.S. has not produced Stinger missiles since 2005, but “now thanks to the Ukraine aid supplementals, we have a $465 million contract to build Stinger missiles.” Ukraine’s successful use of American weapons has increased demand for U.S.-made weapons which will fuel our economy for decades to come. Shouldn’t Congresspeople work harder to preserve and create jobs for their constituencies?

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the United States of America in December 2022. Source: President of Ukraine

How and when we provide this aid matters too. This week, my colleagues from allied countries lamented how indecisive and divided the United States looks, or is, as a country – how are we even not able to push through a bill that enjoys bipartisan support?

While our allies lament our indecision, division, and polarization, our enemies celebrate them. In Russia, they are laughing at us right now. Putin’s propagandists on state-controlled television praised Republicans for advancing Russian national interests. As one of Putin’s most prominent propagandists, Olga Skabeeva, said, “Well done, Republicans! They’re standing firm! That’s good for us.” If Putin’s team is cheering for you, maybe it is time to rethink your actions.

At the end of the week, Biden officials hinted that they were ready to compromise on some language regarding immigration reform. I hope that’s a sign that a deal can be struck before Congress goes on holiday. (For some reason, they need to start their vacation on December 15^th, while most of the country will still be working through the following week.) While they might be off work, soldiers in Ukraine won’t have that luxury. It would be a great Christmas gift to those Ukrainian soldiers in the trenches to get this supplemental funding bill passed next week. It would be tragic if we failed, both for Ukraine, but also for America’s reputation around the world.

C’mon Senators, and thereafter, members of the House of Representatives, get this done! I guarantee you that you will feel better going on vacation after you have made some concrete steps in advancing the security interests of the United States.