On its way out for the holidays, Congress recently approved a $45 billion aid package for Ukraine.
President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, arrived in Washington, D.C., this week to lobby President Biden and the U.S. Congress for tens of billions of dollars in more aid for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself from Russia's illegitimate invasion.
In an emotional speech, the leader of Ukraine thanked Americans for their assistance but stressed that more must be done to combat Russia.
“We have artillery — yes, thank you,” Zelensky said. “Is it enough? Honestly, not really.”
Members of Congress responded favorably to Zelensky's speech, as they repeatedly stood to applaud him during his speech.
Pres. Biden signed a $1.7 trillion omnibus package Friday, the same day the House voted to pass the bill.
The omnibus budget plan, which includes $45 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine, was approved by the House on Friday in response to Zelensky's plea. The bill was passed mostly along party lines.
The US has already provided Ukraine with $68 billion. With the additional $45 billion, the total amount of money the US has committed to Ukraine since the crisis started will be close to $113 billion.
Numerous factors can be used to put this significant expenditure of tax dollars in perspective. Firstly, it is more aid than the United States has given to any country in a single year since the Vietnam War.
Additionally, it exceeds the $84 billion that Russia is anticipated to spend in 2023 on its military. In fact, U.S. assistance to Ukraine is more than every country in the world spends on its military.
The $113 billion is also nearly as much as the total amount that the omnibus bill allows for baseline spending at the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department put together, and it is nearly as much as the $118.7 billion that the United States will spend on the medical care of all U.S. military veterans.
Considering that the omnibus package funds the entire federal government throughout 2023, comparing spending on domestic objectives with aid to Ukraine is also important. And there isn't a comparison, to be honest. According to the bill's own calculations, spending on Ukraine far exceeds that on the majority of domestic issues.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, responsible for releasing the omnibus bill, announced the massive increase in Ukraine aid, and made it clear that this was around $4 billion more than “communities across the country recovering from drought, hurricanes, flooding, wildfire, [and] natural disasters” would receive.
The most telling statistic, in terms of federal cash received, is that if Ukraine were a state in the United States, it would be ranked eleventh. In other words, more U.S. taxpayer money has gone to Ukraine over the last year than to 40 U.S. states.
Americans should, at the very least, discuss how large a check we're willing to write for Ukraine while pundits from all ideological perspectives claim there is no "blank check" for Ukraine. This is especially true given that American households are currently struggling with skyrocketing inflation and a stagnant economy that may be headed into recession in 2023.
The issue is not whether or not the United States should support Ukraine; the issue is how much support Washington should provide for Ukraine in the months and perhaps years to come. While the United States should continue to assist Ukraine in defending itself against Putin's reckless invasion, it is long past due for Americans to have a sincere discussion about how much of this assistance should be paid for by American taxpayers.