The Republican meltdown on Capitol Hill that ousted the speaker this week and plunged the House of Representatives into chaos has also made clear that Republican support for continuing aid to Ukraine has plummeted, as has opposition against aid to Kiev has become a litmus test for the right.
The deepening shift is remarkable for a party that has long been defined by its belief in a powerful American military that defends democracy around the world. And it could make it significantly more difficult for the Biden administration to fulfill its promise to provide long-term support to Ukrainian fighters.
Hardline Republican critics have long held isolationist views on Ukraine’s war effort, arguing that sending tens of billions of dollars to Kiev risks drawing the United States into direct conflict with Russia and diverting money from domestic political challenges. Former President Donald J. Trump popularized the argument with his “America First” approach to foreign policy, but until recently most lawmakers refrained from adopting it.
But the drama that unfolded in the House last week, as Republicans pushed the government to the brink of a shutdown and then ousted their own speaker, made clear that the right-wing message is gaining momentum among Republicans.
In recent days, Republicans have succeeded in cutting billions in military and humanitarian aid demanded by Mr. Biden from an emergency budget bill to prevent a government shutdown. They called on the majority of their colleagues in the House of Representatives to vote against funding a program to train and equip Ukrainian troops. And a small faction of hardliners joined Democrats in firing Rep. Kevin McCarthy, Republican of California, as speaker after accusing him of cutting a “secret side deal” with Mr. Biden to support Kiev’s war on Russia finance.
The divisions among Republicans on the issue are now clearly on display in the battle to succeed Mr. McCarthy, pitting Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the second-largest Republican to support aid to Ukraine, against Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio , the judiciary, takes over as committee chairman who loudly speaks out against it.
While naysayers overall still represent a minority in Congress, the dramatic shift in Republican sentiment has left Ukraine advocates in the party angry and alarmed and working to figure out how to reverse the trend before a funding shortfall hindered Ukraine on the battlefield.
They were particularly concerned last week when 117 Republicans – the majority of their members – voted against a bill that would fund a $300 million program to train and equip Ukrainian fighters. The bill passed, but the level of Republican opposition almost certainly means it will run into trouble in the House, where Republicans typically refuse to take action on issues that don’t have the support of a majority of their own members.
Rep. Mike D. Rogers, Republican of Alabama and chairman of the Armed Services Committee, lamented a “small contingent” of agitators “who have made this a bargaining chip for their plans.”
They “inflamed our base to think that if you’re for Ukrainian funds, you can’t be for a secure border, or that you’re a liberal or whatever,” Mr. Rogers added. “But if you talk to people, they don’t have a problem, they just don’t want to get into trouble at home.”
There were signs earlier this year that aid to Ukraine could be in trouble. In June, Mr. McCarthy said he opposed voting in the House on an emergency spending package for Ukraine, citing an agreement he had just reached with Mr. Biden to set federal spending caps in exchange for suspending the debt ceiling.
Then in July, the House voted on several amendments to block Congress from approving military aid to Ukraine as part of its review of the defense authorization bill. Everything failed – but it turned out that skepticism about Ukraine in the Republican Party had increased by a few dozen votes since the year before.
The trend accelerated noticeably after MPs took an extended summer break to spend time with voters. When they returned to Washington, dozens more critics joined in voting against funding Ukraine. Politics and public pressure apparently made the difference.
“This is a very unpopular issue — not just with Republican voters, but with Americans,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican of Georgia and one of the lawmakers leading the charge against Ukraine funding. Citing a recent CNN poll that found a majority of Americans opposed further financial support for Ukraine’s war effort, she said aid had become a toxic issue, even for those previously inclined to support it to support.
One of those Republicans, Rep. John Curtis of Utah, had voted for aid to Ukraine several times in the past. But last week he joined critics and voted against funding the training program. He said he did this to get answers from the Biden administration about the path to victory, accountability and the relative commitment of other NATO countries to the game.
“I support Ukraine in its war. I support continued funding of their efforts, but these are fundamental questions any organization would ask in a transaction,” Mr. Curtis said in a statement. “To continue spending Utahns’ tax dollars, Congress must receive assurances on these issues.”
Even some strong Republican supporters of aid to Ukraine now say it is difficult to imagine mustering the votes for another infusion without Democrats making major policy and spending concessions. Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican and an outspoken supporter, said the Senate could put together a package of up to $60 or $70 billion for Kiev – far exceeding Mr. Biden’s demand for $24 billion. However, he said this would have to be accompanied by strict immigration restrictions.
Mr. Biden is expected to give a major speech on Ukraine aid in the coming days, but this forum is not conducive to discussing sensitive issues such as gun tracking. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky used his recent visit to Washington to appeal for more help, but McCarthy declined to host a briefing where he could have made his case to House members and directly addressed their concerns.
Republican efforts to counter skepticism about Ukraine aid have done little to stem the tide. Sen. Mitch McConnell, the minority leader, spent nearly every day of the Senate session in September publicly appealing to Congress to fund the president’s request for aid to Ukraine, arguing that the additional billions would also be for national security of the USA and the domestic economy are of crucial importance.
But even in the Senate, where three-quarters of Republicans continue to support aid to Ukraine, his desire to prioritize that fight was undermined by other Republican senators afraid of ignoring the Republican-led House. In a closed session on Saturday, with just hours left before a possible shutdown, they decided to reject their own emergency budget draft, which included funds for Kiev, and instead accept a draft drawn up by Mr. McCarthy that did not.
That turned the issue of future aid to Ukraine on its head, with some Republicans complaining that the issue had become a politicized bargaining chip.
“Without President Trump’s leadership — I use the term loosely — in the Republican Party, we wouldn’t be seeing this kind of opposition,” said Sen. Todd Young, Republican of Indiana. “It’s just very difficult to keep up with the carnival barking of a very loud and energetic minority in our party.”
Catie Edmondson and Luke Broadwater contributed reporting.