Vote Explainer —Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel Foreign Aid Supplemental

Transparency is vital to democracy. Below please find explainers for key votes I took in the 118th Congress.

H.R. 8035- Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act; H.R. 8036- Indo-Pacific Security Supplemental Appropriations Act; and H.R. 8038- 21st Century Peace through Strength Act

On Saturday, I voted to pass four long-overdue bills providing aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. These bills send vital security assistance to our democratic allies and strengthen U.S. national security. After months of delay, Speaker Johnson finally stood up to the extreme right and brought these supplemental bills to the floor for a vote. Once he did, they passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. It shouldn't be so hard to simply get a vote on important bills in the House; this shameful Republican delay cost lives, particularly in Ukraine.

To read my full explainer for my vote to pass aid to Israel and Gaza, click here.

I was proud to vote to pass over $60 billion for military and economic aid to help Ukraine defend itself in Russia's criminal war started by war criminal Putin. Stopping Putin in Ukraine means stopping him before he enters NATO territory and U.S. troops are in the fight. It also sends a critical message to Putin and other autocrats, like Xi Xinping, that democracies will stand together when dictators start illegal wars. There is a third point on nuclear proliferation and deterrence that I explained in an op-edover a year ago.

Ukraine is perilously low on ammunition, and Russia is close to retaking significant territory. This aid is vital to keeping Ukraine in the fight.

I also voted in favor of a bill that will strengthen deterrence in the Indo-Pacific - one of my highest priorities in Congress. If Xi Xinping follows in Putin's footsteps and does exactly what he's said he will do, invading Taiwan, this could go nuclear and literally result in World War III. The stakes couldn't be higher, so we must succeed at deterrence. This $8.1 billion will bolster the submarine industrial base, provide defensive capabilities to Taiwan and Guam, and strengthen partnerships with our other allies in the Indo-Pacific. President Xi is watching closely as we aim to make him think twice before using force to "reunify" with Taiwan, which he has ordered his army to be ready to do by 2027.

The final bill I voted on this weekend, the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, contained an array of policies that will strengthen our national security and punish bad actors in Russia, Iran, and elsewhere. The bill included several measures for which I have previously voted in favor: renewed sanctions on Iran, plus a provision forcing the Chinese Communist Party-controlled Bytedance to divest of TikTok. The bill also will allow the President to seize frozen Russian sovereign assets and use them to pay for Ukraine's reconstruction. I wrote a billto do just this back in 2022.

America is stronger and safer when it is engaged abroad, when we support our allies in word and deed, and when we defend democracy around the world. Our adversaries were watching these bills closely, hoping that our political divisions would prevent us from doing the right thing.

The eight-month delay in passing these bills sent the wrong signal. Thankfully, an overwhelming majority of my colleagues voted to pass this legislation when finally given the opportunity. Many of the people who voted against this aid represent the far

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, America will always do the right thing, but not before it has tried everything else. I'm glad we did the right thing on Saturday. I'm frustrated that it took so long.

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