- Speaker Johnson continues to signal openness to more Ukraine aid, despite past opposition.
- He's now floating confiscating billions in Russian government assets to pay for it.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is suggesting that the US should confiscate assets owned by the Russian government to pay for more aid to Ukraine.
"It would be pure poetry to fund the Ukrainian war effort with Russian assets," Johnson told the New York Post.
"As you can imagine, that idea has been met with great enthusiasm on the Republican side," he continued. "I suspect it will be with our colleagues on the other side as well. It's an eminently responsible thing for us to do."
It's not as straightforward as it sounds.
Lawmakers have introduced bills to confiscate Russian government assets for Ukraine, such as the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity (REPO) for Ukrainians Act. But that bill is aimed at funding Ukraine's eventual reconstruction, rather than military aid.
Roughly $300 billion in Russian Central Bank assets have been frozen globally since the country's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine — but two-thirds of that money sits in European accounts, not American accounts.
Furthermore, confiscating those assets comes with significant risks, including hurting both the dollar and Euro's stature as major reserve currencies, strengthening domestic support in Russia for the war, and potentially violating international laws.
Nonetheless, it would be the latest attempt by Johnson to offset foreign aid spending, a relatively novel approach that's been met with skepticism from Democrats and even some Republicans.
Last week, the House passed a bill that would provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel while also cutting that same amount of money from the Internal Revenue Service, a move that experts project would increase the US government's spending deficit by weakening the agency's ability to collect tax revenue.
That bill has gone nowhere in the Democratic-controlled Senate, and the immediate path for Israel aid remains unclear.
In addition to the Israel aid, the Biden administration has requested more than $60 billion for Ukraine, as well as billions in funding for humanitarian aid, Taiwan's defense, and border security.
House Republicans have sought to separate Ukraine and Israel, while Senate Republicans are demanding changes to US border security policy as part of the effort.
Despite consistently voting against Ukraine aid in the past two years as a rank-and-file lawmaker, Johnson has signaled openness to allowing more Ukraine aid to be approved since becoming speaker.
That's been encouraging news for supporters of Ukraine aid — and cause for concern among long-time opponents.
To his great credit, the new speaker has been a stalwart on the Ukraine issue—voting consistently against an endless conflict with no plan from the Biden administration.
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) October 27, 2023
It’s concerning to see him change his tune so quickly after being elevated to this role. https://t.co/VBIKMpjZUW