NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The Republican-led House on Thursday passed a sweeping security package providing new military aid to Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russia, delivering a sharp rebuke to the Trump administration, who opposed the measure.
Eighteen Republicans crossed party lines to support the Democrat-authored legislation in a vote of 226-195. California Rep. Kevin Kiley, an independent who caucuses with Republicans, also supported the legislation. Meanwhile, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was the lone Democratic lawmaker to vote against the bill.
House GOP leadership and the vast majority of Republicans opposed the legislation aimed at bolstering Ukraine’s defenses amid a surge in Russian missile and drone strikes as the conflict enters its fifth year.
The measure now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uphill battle to clear the chamber. The White House said the legislation would undermine President Donald Trump’s goal of ending the prolonged conflict and that he would veto the measure, according to a statement obtained by Fox News Digital.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: GOP REBELS DEFY TRUMP AS CONGRESSIONAL GRIP CONTINUES TO WEAKEN ACROSS MULTIPLE VOTES
“The bill seeks to tie the President’s hands by mandating a wide-ranging U.S. response to the Russia-Ukraine war while adding hundreds of millions in unfunded authorizations,” the White House document reads, in part.
The security package would reaffirm U.S. support for Ukraine and NATO, authorize more than $1.5 billion in new security assistance and $8 billion in direct loans, and extend a Pentagon program that procures weapons and military equipment for Ukraine.
The legislation would also target the Kremlin’s energy profits, which are central to keeping Russia’s war effort going, as well as organizations and companies that do business with sanctioned Russian entities.
The White House warned that the legislation’s mandatory sanctions would “plunge the global economy into chaos.”
But Republicans who supported the measure said its passage should not be viewed as defying the president.
“President Trump has been the leader to support the people of Ukraine, and so I’ll be voting for the people of Ukraine, continuing the Trump tradition of support,” Wilson, a South Carolina lawmaker, told Fox News Digital in an interview.
When asked about GOP opposition, Wilson said, “Putin needs to know that the American people stand with the brave and courageous people of Ukraine.”
PRO-UKRAINE GOP REP. BACON DECLARES ‘REAL REPUBLICANS KNOW THAT PUTIN’S RUSSIA HATES THE WEST AND FREEDOM’
Still, several Republicans who opposed the measure said their opposition should not be viewed as a lack of support for Ukraine.
“This bill is not about helping Ukraine. This is not about standing up to Vladimir Putin,” Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., said. “This is about engaging in Trump Derangement Syndrome as President Trump tries to bring this [conflict] in for a landing.”
Others in the GOP conference voiced firm opposition to additional U.S. aid for the country.
“I oppose further funding of Ukraine,” Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., told Fox News Digital.
The successful vote came after the legislation, sponsored by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., had languished in the House Foreign Affairs Committee for more than a year after being introduced in early 2025.
But the measure gained momentum after a handful of defecting Republicans signed a Democrat-authored discharge petition that triggered a vote over the objections of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who controls the floor.
Most Republicans are reluctant to support legislation that comes to the floor via a discharge petition, which is often seen as undermining GOP leadership and aiding Democrats in the minority.
“Democrats have repeatedly governed in the minority as if we were in the majority, and we’re going to do so again this week,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Tuesday.
Some GOP lawmakers also argued the Ukraine measure was poorly drafted and outdated.
For example, the bill calls on NATO countries to increase defense spending to 2% of their economic output, but Trump secured a 5% commitment from allies in 2025.
“This bill literally moves us backwards, and a decrease of NATO defense member spending would be the result,” Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa., said.
The legislation also proposes a lower figure for training and equipping Ukraine’s military than what Congress authorized last year in annual defense policy legislation.
“It’s increasingly obvious that this [war] will end, and when it ends, it will be through negotiation,” Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, said during debate on the House floor. “If you support this bill, then clearly you are not interested in peace, because the consequences would tie the hands of this president and could lead to future hostilities that would bleed over into Europe.”
But the legislation’s proponents fired back that Ukraine is in desperate need of military aid amid stalled efforts to end the war.
“This is our Churchill moment or our Chamberlain moment,” Bacon, who is not running for reelection, said. “By God, I want to choose Churchill, and this House better choose Churchill.”
Read the full article here
