A majority of Republicans on Thursday joined Democrats in rejecting an amendment to the annual defense bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) that would have prohibited funds from the bill from being used to aid Ukraine.
The House passed Greene’s proposal by a vote of 74 to 343. measurementA majority of Republicans voted in favor of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). A majority of Republicans (138) voted against it.
The amendment states that “funds made available by this Act may not be used for assistance to Ukraine,” but House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) objected to the measure, noting that the NDAA does not appropriate funds for Ukraine.
He noted that the amendment would cut off funding for the Marines to be stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Kiev and prevent the Department of Defense from monitoring U.S. weapons systems already in Ukraine, and urged lawmakers to vote against it.
“My colleagues from Georgia will be pleased to know that there is nothing in this year’s Department of Defense legislation authorizing aid to Ukraine. That funding will be provided through a supplemental appropriations bill,” Rep. Rogers said during debate on the House floor Thursday.
“The problem with this amendment is that it would cut funding to maintain the Marine presence at the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, and it would cut the Pentagon’s ability to conduct oversight and use weapons systems that the U.S. has already provided to Ukraine,” he added. “We don’t want those weapons to get into the wrong hands. We need to make sure those weapons stay in our hands. I urge members of Congress to oppose this amendment.”
Greene also alleged that the NDAA includes about $300 million for the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which has provided funding to Ukraine.
Still, the tepid support for Greene’s amendment came nearly two months after the House passed a bill to send about $61 billion to Ukraine, capping months of intense debate at the Republican conference, and across the GOP, about the U.S. role in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
The issue has pitted isolationist Republicans, many of whom are supporters of former President Trump, against Reaganite traditionalists who favor overseas intervention.
A total of 112 Republicans voted against aid to Kiev, outnumbering the 101 who supported the funding.
Greene and others on the right argued that the U.S. should focus more on domestic priorities, including the situation on the southern border, and opposed additional aid to Ukraine.
The Georgia Republican made that argument again during debate on the House floor on Thursday.
“Funding the war in Ukraine does nothing to ensure our security, but rather puts us at risk of further possible military engagement with nuclear-armed Russia,” Greene said. “The American people do not support this, and neither do the majority of Congress who voted against funding the war in Ukraine.”
The congressman noted how much aid the US has already sent to Ukraine, adding, “It takes millions of American hard-earned tax dollars to secure other countries’ borders while our own borders are violated every day.”
“Not only is our border being invaded by millions of people from over 160 countries every day, but a war on human trafficking and drugs has been declared on our country, Americans are being killed every day, and an average of 300 Americans are dying from fentanyl overdoses,” she added. “I believe that’s what we should be focused on as the United States Congress.”
