Ukraine funding should stay out of debt ceiling talks, congressman says as GOP rift deepens

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Ukraine funding levels should not be part of debt ceiling conversations, according to Rep. Jack Bergman (R-MI), and Republicans should focus more on trimming the bureaucracy within the Pentagon than on cutting any specific military programs.

It’s a view that reflects a broad swath of the Republican Party — that any federal budget reductions should not come at the expense of national security efforts against the backdrop of today’s twin challenges of Russia and China.

But some GOP lawmakers have raised questions about whether continuing support for Ukraine at current levels advances U.S. interests, and some have said aid to Ukraine should remain on the table during spending reduction talks.

“The most important thing that especially Congress should be talking about is the accountability when we send something — money, equipment — to Ukraine,” Bergman told the Washington Examiner. “The funding levels are always going to be a discussion, but when you combine the funding levels with the types of equipment that we’re sending, that’s probably more important than the funding level.”

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The United States has sent $62 billion of the total $113 billion it has given to Ukraine through the Defense Department for direct military aid, and much of the rest has gone to causes such as humanitarian aid, restoring telecommunications systems, and propping up Ukrainian government functions that have buckled under the pressure of the Russian invasion.

Some Republicans have criticized President Joe Biden for failing to establish an off-ramp for the U.S. involvement in Ukraine’s war against Russia.

Speaker Vote
UNITED STATES – JANUARY 4: Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Mich., is seen on the floor during Speaker of the House votes on Wednesday, January 4, 2023.


Bergman said Biden shouldn’t have to.

“I don’t think, necessarily, that any administration could do that task,” he said.

Other Republicans have hit Biden on that point.

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), who has expressed skepticism about allowing aid to Ukraine to continue at current heights, said recently that the administration’s message to Ukraine and Russia should look toward the end of the conflict.

“Look, America’s not going to fund this war indefinitely,” Vance said recently. “Let’s come to the negotiating table. And I think that’s what Joe Biden should be doing.”

Bergman, a member of both the House Armed Services Committee and Budget Committee, said Republicans should look not at Ukraine aid or the military’s warfighting abilities when searching for potential cuts but at the layers of bureaucracy within the Pentagon.

“If we could cut waste by 10% in the federal government, we would have more than enough money, double times over, to send aid to Ukraine and other countries,” Bergman said.

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) highlighted the GOP’s divide on Ukraine sharply this week when he said helping Ukraine fend off Russia does not directly serve U.S. interests, putting him at odds with not only other Republican candidates in the 2024 presidential primary he is likely to join but also with many Republicans in Congress, including Bergman.

That divide could become a decisive rift as Republicans seek to distinguish themselves both from each other and from a Democratic administration they hope to dislodge next year. Biden has remained steadfastly in favor of backing Ukraine against Russia.

The public is not as convinced about the war in Ukraine; a recent poll showed the majority of Republicans viewed China as Americans’ greatest enemy, while most Democrats see Russia as the greatest U.S. adversary.

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Bergman said claims that Congress is too focused on Russia, at the expense of China, are misplaced.

“I think what I’ve heard the people criticize are the ones who probably don’t have a whole lot of national security and military operational background,” Bergman said. “So, I can tell you for a fact that there is a lot of attention being paid to China, especially when it comes to Taiwan, because that’s the wolf closest to the sled, if you will.”

“I can’t speak for what the administration is doing or even the State Department,” he added. “But I can tell you what I see in my area of responsibility here.”

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