After an 80-19 vote in the afternoon on cloture, the U.S. Senate on Tuesday evening passed the National Security Supplemental measure by a vote of 79-18. It will now head to President Joe Biden’s desk for signature.
Senate aligns with House. Approves combo foreign aid/TikTok bill, 79-18
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) April 24, 2024
The measure passed the House on Saturday by a vote of 311-112.
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BREAKING: Ukraine Bill Passes House, All Amendments Fail. Swift Senate Passage Seems Guaranteed.
Once it cleared the House, the package was all but guaranteed passage in the Senate. Here’s a rundown of what it includes.
The Senate on Tuesday passed a $95 billion emergency foreign aid package, ending months of bitter fighting over $61 billion for the war in Ukraine that had deeply divided the Republican Party.
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The package also includes $15 billion in military aid for Israel and $9 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza and other war-torn areas, which became another flashpoint among conservative Republicans who argued it didn’t have adequate safeguards to keep it from going to Hamas.
It provides $8 billion in security assistance to deter Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific.
And it includes language to force the Chinese owner of TikTok to divest from the popular app, which is used by more than 140 million Americans, or otherwise face a ban within the United States.
But the centerpiece of the package is $47.7 billion that would flow through the Defense Department to provide training, equipment, weapons, logistics support and supplies to help Ukraine’s military, as well as $13.4 billion to replenish U.S. equipment sent to Ukraine and $20.5 billion for U.S. Armed Forces support in Europe.
It also includes $9.5 billion in economic aid to Ukraine structured as a forgivable loan, an idea that former President Trump gave life to when the Senate passed a previous version of the $95 billion assistance package in February.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) celebrated the bill’s passage.
Schumer: Finally Finally. Finally tonight, after more than six months of hard work and many twists and turns in the road, America sends a message to the entire world. We will not turn our back on you. Tonight, we, our allies, we stand with you. We tell our adversaries don’t mess…
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) April 24, 2024
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) also claimed it as a victory.
McConnell: History will record that even as allies and partners may have worried about the depth of our resolve. Even as Moscow, Beijing and Tehran grew more convinced that our influence had run its course and, even as loud voices here at home insisted on abandoning the…
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) April 24, 2024
Not all Republican senators were on board with the measure. The nays included Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), who told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Tuesday evening that his vote was a close call because there were aspects of the package with which he does agree, including aid to Israel. But because it gives money to NGOs trafficking illegal immigrants and does nothing to secure the southern border, he could not agree to it.
Here’s a list of the other nays on the bill:
Nays on foreign aid bill:
Barasso
Blackburn
Braun
Budd
Cruz
Hagerty
Hawley
Johnson
Lee
Lummis
Marshall
Merkley
Rubio
Sanders
Schmitt
Scott FL
Vance
Welch— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) April 24, 2024
