Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces Valeriy Zaluzhny, center, attends an event for marking Statehood Day in Mykhailivska Square in Kyiv, Friday, July 28, 2023. AP

Ukraine can’t wait for Democrats to get serious about the border

Washington Examiner November 13, 07:15 AM November 13, 07:15 AM Video Embed

President Joe Biden’s misguided appeasement of Iran, his catastrophic retreat from Afghanistan, and his fragile physical and mental state have signaled to the world that America is weak. Weakness is provocative. Biden’s weakness has emboldened Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine, it emboldened Hamas to attack Israel, and it may convince China that now is the time to attack Taiwan.

What America needs is a new president. But voters cannot make that change for another 12 months. In the meantime, Republicans should do everything they can to support U.S. allies until a stronger president can be sworn into office. That means passing emergency aid to Israel, as the House of Representatives has already done. And it means passing aid to Ukraine as soon as possible.

WHAT THE GOP CAN LEARN FROM 2023

Ukraine is an imperfect ally. Corruption was a problem there before Russia invaded, and the hundreds of billions of dollars now flowing through Kyiv have doubtless made it worse. U.S. aid should come with oversight over how the money is spent.

But the aid is working. Ukraine is still free. Putin is frustrated, which is a profoundly important strategic goal. If Washington were to cut off aid to Ukraine and Putin won, it would be a disaster felt well beyond Europe. It would signal again to our enemies that America is too weak to support its allies and that now is the time to strike. Much harm and no good can come from risking such a severe setback. Irredentist tyrants must be shown that the West has the will and ability to defeat them.

Congress must pass aid for Ukraine now.

Republicans in both the House and Senate want to tie Ukraine aid to changes in policy that will secure our southern border. This is an admirable cause. Our southern border is not just insecure but wide open — a travesty of democracy and the rule of law and a severe hardship to communities all over the nation.

Democrats are happy to let that problem fester, but their irresponsibility does not justify reciprocal irresponsibility by Republicans on Ukraine.

When a group of Republican senators introduced legislation last week that included measures that would secure the border, such as the resumption of the popular and successful “Remain in Mexico” policy, Democrats flatly rejected the effort.

Biden is also asking for billions of taxpayer dollars to bail out Democrat’s sanctuary cities that cannot afford to house, feed, clothe, and educate the hundreds of thousands of immigrants flooding them.

If Biden wants money for immigrants, Republicans should not hold out on Ukraine but should instead refuse to bail out the Democrats until they agree to cut other spending and end policies that created the border crisis in the first place.

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Democrats have come some distance on immigration. New York City Mayor Eric Adams is demanding immigration reform. Chicago leaders want to repeal their city’s sanctuary city policies. The Democratic Party’s evolution on border security will continue as their constituents’ anger grows.

But this will take time. Ukraine does not have that time. Congress should pass Ukraine funding now and revisit Biden’s request for a sanctuary city bailout later.

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