Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has led a delegation of GOP Senators on a surprise visit to Kyiv where they met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
CNN reported:
Zelensky said on his Instagram account that the visit "is a strong signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine from the United States Congress and the American people."
He added: "Thank you for your leadership in helping us in our struggle not only for our country, but also for democratic values and freedoms. We really appreciate it."
Later in his nightly video address to the nation, Zelenskyy said
he believed that the senators’ trip showed “the strong connection between the Ukrainian and American people. We discussed various areas of support for our country, including defense and finance, as well as strengthening sanctions against Russia,” according to The Associated Press.
McConnell was joined on the visit by other senators from the establishment wing of the GOP: Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, John Barrasso of Wyoming and John Cornyn of Texas.
It may be a form of damage control after McConnell’s fellow Kentucky senator, Rand Paul, delayed immediate passage of a $40 billion humanitarian and military aid package to Ukraine
Earlier this month, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a delegation of House Democrats met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv.
Last weekend, first lady Jill Biden visited a city in southwestern Ukraine, near the Slovakian border, where she met Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska.
On Thursday, Paul blocked quick passage of a critical $40 billion package needed to keep military and humanitarian aid flowing to Ukraine amid an escalating Russian onslaught in the Donbas region.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and McConnell had agreed to fast-track the legislation by requesting unanimous consent in order to bypass procedural hurdles so the Ukraine aid package could be approved that day.
The House had approved the aid package on Tuesday by a 368 to 57 vote. The “No” votes came from Republican House members.
Paul’s move to deny unanimous content has delayed passage of the bill until at least next week. Paul demanded changes to the legislation, asking for creation of a special inspector general to oversee how the aid to Ukraine is used.
At the time, McConnell said: “Ukraine is not asking us to fight this war. They’re only asking for the resources they need to defend themselves against this deranged invasion. And they need this help right now.”
But Paul would not yield and said:
"My oath of office is to the U.S. Constitution not to any foreign nation and no matter how sympathetic the cause, my oath of office is to the national security of the United States of America, We cannot save Ukraine by dooming the U.S. economy."
Paul’s opposition to Ukraine aid is not a fringe opinion among Congressional Republicans. Newsweek has compiled lists of
57 GOP House members and
31 Senators who have voted against aid to Ukraine since the war began.
Those 57 House members include Marjorie Taylor Greene who tweeted some pro-Putin talking points after McConnell’s visit to Kyiv was made public.
She said that Pelosi and McConnell both visited Zelenskyy in Kyiv without feeling the need to wear bullet-proof vests and helmets, while they “eagerly give billions to fund their proxy war w/ Russia.”
“If the conditions in Ukraine were so grave to warrant the U.S. sending $54 billion, then our highest ranking leaders would not be able to go.
“But conditions at our own U.S. border are out of control warranting billions of funding, however there is baby formula there.”
McConnell realizes that his hopes of becoming Majority Leader may be undermined by Trump-backed MAGA candidates such as J.D. Vance in Ohio who have expressed indifference to Ukraine’s plight. Polls show that Americans overwhelmingly support military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion.
But it shouldn’t be forgotten that all the senators in the GOP delegation to Kyiv voted to acquit Trump ;in his first impeachment trial when he was accused of withholding military aid to Ukrain, including Javelin anti-tank missiles, to extort Zelenskyy into announcing an investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden.