Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Blaise Malley
“[T]he Biden administration and Senate Republican leadership have endorsed legislation that ties Ukraine-related assistance with increased disaster relief funding in an emergency spending package. Last Thursday, Punchbowl News reported that McCarthy was considering attaching the disaster relief to a continuing resolution while omitting aid to Ukraine from the short-term spending bill, setting up a potential showdown with the White House and Senate. McCarthy has sent mixed signals about his position on Ukraine aid since saying that there would be no ‘blank check’ for Kyiv prior to ascending to the speakership. By deciding to separate Ukraine aid from the stopgap funding bill and reportedly instead tying it to controversial immigration policies, McCarthy has leaned closer to the right flank of his party on this question. This maneuver may open the door for more debate over funding for Ukraine, though the group is not necessarily in agreement over what precisely ‘no blank check’ means.” (09/14/23)