Saturday, 16 November 2024

Ukraine's Zelensky 'Personally' Thanks Mike Johnson for $61 Billion Gift from U.S. Taxpayers


Ukraine's Zelensky 'Personally' Thanks Mike Johnson for $61 Billion Gift from U.S. Taxpayers
Zelensky and Johnson, Jose Luis Magana/APJose Luis Magana/AP

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was “personally” grateful to “Speaker Mike Johnson for the decision that keeps history on the right track” after Johnson shepherded a $61 billion Ukraine aid package through the House Saturday.

The image of scores of Democrats waving Ukraine flags and cheering on the House floor as the bill passed will forever sting the conservatives from whose ranks Johnson rose, only to serve them with the ultimate betrayal.

“I am grateful to the United States House of Representatives, both parties, and personally Speaker Mike Johnson for the decision that keeps history on the right track,” a gleeful Zelensky posted on X after the vote.

He continued, “The vital U.S. aid bill passed today by the House will keep the war from expanding, save thousands and thousands of lives, and help both of our nations to become stronger.”

That assessment is debatable. Certainly, the Mike Johnson of only a few months ago would have strongly disputed it. But the long and intense pressure campaign from the strong-willed Zelensky – who apparently charmed the diminutive Louisiana Congressman during their meeting – and the White House proved successful.

Johnson's Saturday success cemented a remarkable reversal from his long-held position of fervent opposition to advancing foreign aid without securing American's own border.

But to Zelensky and the Democrats joyfully waving a foreign flag on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, Johnson's betrayal of his prior position was to be celebrated.

“Thank you, America!” Zelensky said.

Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.


Source link