Yesterday’s vote concerns us directly, because of the 95.3 billion dollar package in question, well 60 are destined for Ukraine, and if the money doesn’t arrive, whether we like it or not, the European states will have to make up for this lack. Trump was the standard-bearer in the fight to block the funds, both to blackmail Congress into giving more money to strengthen the border with Mexico and to demonstrate to his base that once he regains the presidency the United States will stop writing checks for the defense of other countries, including Europe. “Not even a penny must be given to foreign states except as a loan, never again as a gift” he wrote a few days ago on his social network “Truth”. Instead, at the time of the vote, 18 Republican senators blatantly disobeyed the order The Donald. The Tycoon, furious at his betrayal, said at a rally in South Carolina: “I would encourage (the Russians) to do whatever the hell they want with NATO states that don’t want to pay enough for their own defense. They must pay”.
It is easy to imagine that the sentence triggered an uproar of reactions, demonstrating once again the split within the Republicans themselves. Mitch McConnell, leader of the Senate Republicans and one of the most powerful men in US politics, said: “I know it is fashionable in some circles to scorn our interests as a global power, and to complain about the responsibilities that our global leadership entails. It is a useless game for useless minds, which has no place in the United States.”
It is probable that, with compromises, the relief package will pass also the next votes, relieving us Europeans from the responsibility of investing further billions in the defense of Ukraine. Trump, meanwhile, finds himself battling both Democratic adversaries and enemies within his own party.
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