Will #Trump Pay A Price For The Ukraine Deal?
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2024-04-22/will-trump-pay-price-ukraine-deal
President Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson and Mar-a-Lago earlier this month.
Confusion About Trump's Role In The Ukraine Bill
After the House of Representatives passed legislation sending more money to the Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel, while throwing in a few billion dollars for NGOs facilitating the invasion of America's Southern border, #NeverTrump Republicans and neocons called it a defeat for Trump.
Today’s three biggest losers
- -Vladimir Putin
- -Xi Jinping
-Donald Trump
Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/Bz62NKD6wZ
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) April 20, 2024
Yesterday's vote was a defeat both for aggression in Europe - and for reactionary authoritarianism at home. The aggressors and the authoritarians know it. That's why they are howling. Latest in @TheAtlantic https://t.co/DtAiFLH6EV
— David Frum (@davidfrum) April 21, 2024
But as independent journalist Michael Tracey (and Senator Lindsey Graham) have pointed out, Trump's support was key in getting the bill passed by Congress.
Lindsey Graham confirms what should now be obvious for all to see: the Ukraine funding bill "would not have passed without Donald Trump"
Trump just pulled one of the biggest Scams in American political history -- but his Personality Cult followers are still in denial about it pic.twitter.com/U9ifCuH5Ns
— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) April 21, 2024
Can It Be Stopped In The Senate?
As Senator Mike Lee points out, there's still a chance to stop this in the Senate, but it would require 41 Senators to vote against it.
The $95 billion bill doesn’t have to pass.
It takes only 41 senators stop it.
There are 49 Republicans in the Senate—more than enough.
Where do your senators stand?
Please like and share if you agree that 41 Senate Republicans should unite to stop the $95 billion aid package. https://t.co/BVDCK45GB6
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) April 21, 2024
That seems more likely to happen if someone got Trump to flip against this, but have any Republicans in Congress called Trump out on this?
Has Senator Rand Paul?
Ukrainian flags fly in the chamber of the UNITED STATES House of Representatives as they vote to send more of your hard-earned money to a corrupt foreign regime. And just like that they shout “UKRAINE! UKRAINE!”while happily working to secure Ukraine’s borders, not ours. pic.twitter.com/ZXZo1kliNl
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) April 20, 2024
Or Rep. Thomas Massie?
This is the U.S. House of Representatives under the direction of Speaker Mike Johnson. Democrats are celebrating his total capitulation with no victory for securing our border. #MTV pic.twitter.com/TtaIgnX9eg
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 20, 2024
Or Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene?
Speaker Johnson proved today that the only border he cares about is Ukraine’s. https://t.co/C198x48eVr
— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) April 20, 2024
It's safer to blame Speaker Johnson than the most popular Republican in America.
Will Trump Pay A Price For This?
Georgetown Professor Arta Moeini raised that prospect on X yesterday:
I believe Trump's greatest gift was the intuitive way he understood his base and channeled their frustrations. He's a savvy politician; alarm bells must be going off in his head now. The Democrats & the Security State won doubly yesterday:
They got their billions for their globalist agenda without lifting a finger for the Border
They discredited Trump in the eyes of a good portion of his long-standing, loyal supporters who had stayed with him since 2016 and his war with the Bushes, thereby significantly diminishing his chances for returning to the White House.
I continue to believe Trump abhors war, seeing it as ugly and inexpedient, but his repeated backing of Mike Johnson to allow him to betray the trust of millions of conservatives could become a costly mistake. He has now made the error most politicians make when they go Establishment, trading the love of their base for nice headlines in CNN & the New York Times and ceasing to be the radical force for change that propelled them to power in the first place.
Let's pause here to note that Trump hasn't even gotten those nice headlines; on the contrary, the establishment is still trying to bankrupt him and send him to prison for the rest of his life. Back to Prof. Moeini:
For all their differences and mutual antipathy, this is something Trump shares with Obama.
If Trump loses in November, Historians will remember the betrayal of April 20th as the reason why.
That seems like it will depend on whether any Republicans opposed to this bill bring up Trump's role in getting it passed. "
