Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is calling out Republicans who question whether the U.S. should continue providing financial and military aid to Ukraine. Graham’s statement came as President Biden announced the U.S. will send the country 31 Abrams tanks to help defeat Russia.
“So this idea that we can’t help Ukraine because we got a broken border really makes no sense. Because every problem we have gets worse. That’s like saying we can only fight the Germans or the Japanese, we can’t fight them both. You have to do what you have to do to secure the country,” Graham said.
A few House Republicans, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., have criticized sending billions to Ukraine without increasing funding for security along the U.S. southern border. Just before the midterm elections, Greene criticized Democrats’ priorities.
“The only border they care about is Ukraine, not America’s southern border,” Greene said at a Trump rally. “Under Republicans, not another penny will go to Ukraine. Our country comes first. They don’t care about our border or our people.”
When Republicans took control of Congress, Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he may rein in Ukraine aid and certainly wasn’t supportive of a blank check. Although he privately assured top Republicans who are in charge of national security matters that he will still support Ukraine and just wants better oversight.
Graham just returned from a trip to Ukraine with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. The bipartisan duo said if Putin is allowed to get away with the invasion, it will have significant ramifications beyond Eastern Europe. They added it could even make Chinese President Xi Jingping believe he could invade Taiwan without consequences.
“So the cost of defeating Putin is a good investment in stability of the world at large. I don’t want to live in a world where people can take things of others without consequence. I don’t want to live in a world where militaries can rape women en masse,” Graham said.
Graham and Blumenthal are urging members of Congress to go to Ukraine and meet with President Zelenskyy, and then go to Poland to meet with the U.S. general who is overseeing logistics for military support.
