As they announced, Senate Republicans blocked the military aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan on the grounds that the part intended for border security needed to be strengthened. The vote raises the possibility that Congress will not approve the $61 billion in aid to Kiev by the end of the year, as the White House had demanded, warning that the money would go to helping Kiev against the Russian invasion had gone out.
Senate rules require that for a bill to be voted on, it must first pass a procedural vote with at least 60 senators voting. In addition to the 61 billion for Ukraine, the package includes 10 billion to support Israel in the conflict with Hamas, which urged liberal senator and former White House candidate Bernie Sanders to vote against it, saying it could not continue “Blank checks” to be signed to Benjamin Netanyahu’s “far-right government” as the number of civilian casualties in Gaza continues to rise. “What the Netanyahu government is doing is immoral, it is a violation of international law, and the United States should not be complicit in these actions,” Sanders said. To break the stalemate, before the vote, Joe Biden called on Congress to approve the package to prevent Vladimir Putin from taking advantage of the situation. He also said he was willing to make “significant compromises at the border” but accused Republicans of an “all-or-nothing” stance on immigration. “These are negotiations that Republicans believe they can get anything done without bipartisan compromise,” he said.