***WATCH: Senator Murray’s floor speech ahead of Senate consideration of the House-passed national security supplemental***
Washington, D.C. — Today U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, spoke on the Senate floor ahead of the first votes to advance passage of the House-passed national security supplemental—which is nearly identical to the supplemental that Murray and others negotiated and passed through the Senate in February.
“Here in the Senate—we took action over two months ago, and overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan national security supplemental,” said Murray in her remarks. “I, and many others—Vice Chair Collins, Leader Schumer, and Leader McConnell—we all worked very hard over months to craft legislation that could pass both the Senate and the House—that both Democrats and Republicans could get behind. So, I certainly am glad we are now working to pass the national security supplemental the House sent over—particularly since it is materially identical to the Senate package we cleared with such great support.”
In her floor speech, Senator Murray underscored the importance of getting the supplemental to the President’s desk to live up to America’s commitments and stand by our allies, “At a time when the world is watching, and wondering if the U.S. is still capable of meeting the challenges before us, if we are still united enough to meet them—this package won’t just send aid, it will send a message. It will show our allies that our word is still good, and we will stand by them in times of need. It will show dictators that our warnings are still serious, and we will not let their flagrant attacks go unchecked. And it will show the world that American leadership is still alive and well—that we are still a strong protector of democracy, and provider of humanitarian aid.
Murray also underscored the importance of delivering on humanitarian aid, an investment she has continually pushed for at every stage of the negotiations around the supplemental, “It gets crucial humanitarian aid to civilians in Ukraine, Sudan, and Gaza—including kids caught in the crossfire—who are in desperate need of food, water, and medical care. This was a red line for me. I have pushed hard at every stage to make sure we provide humanitarian aid. At every stage of these negotiations, I made clear: Congress will not advance a supplemental that fails civilians. I will not let us turn our back on women and children who are suffering, and who are often hit hardest by the fallout of chaos and conflict.”
The $95.34 billion House-passed national security supplemental package—which mirrors the original Senate legislation—includes:
- $60.06 billion to support Ukraine as it fights back against Putin’s bloody invasion and protects its people and sovereignty.
- $14.1 billion in security assistance for Israel.
- $2.44 billion to support operations in the U.S. Central Command and address combat expenditures related to conflict in the region.
- $9.15 billion in humanitarian assistance to provide food, water, shelter, medical care, and other essential services to civilians in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, and other populations caught in conflict zones across the globe.
- $8.13 billion to support key regional partners in the Indo-Pacific and deter aggression by the Chinese government.
- $481 million to continue support for Ukrainians displaced by Putin’s war of aggression.
- $400 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program to help nonprofits and places of worship make security enhancements.
Senator Murray has led efforts to extend U.S. support for Ukraine—and as Appropriations Chair, she has pushed at every step of the way to ensure Congress approves a comprehensive national security supplemental with aid for our allies and desperately needed humanitarian assistance. When President Biden submitted his full national security supplemental funding request in October, Senator Murray made clear Congress must deliver on the urgent priorities in the request, chaired a hearing to discuss those priorities with Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, and immediately got to work negotiating a bipartisan package. Senator Murray has blocked repeated attempts to pass a standalone military assistance package for Israel without humanitarian assistance for innocent civilians in Gaza—or aid for Ukraine—and she has insisted on passage of a comprehensive package to address the interrelated national security challenges. In December, she released and pushed to pass a comprehensive package with aid for Ukraine, Israel, and our partners in the Indo-Pacific, as well as humanitarian assistance and resources to address needs at our border—but the comprehensive package was blocked by Senate Republicans, who initially insisted that border policy changes be tied to funding for Ukraine. After Democrats and Republicans negotiated and released a new comprehensive supplemental which included both border policy and funding provisions, Senate Republicans then blocked consideration of that comprehensive package in a 49-50 vote. In February, Senator Murray joined her colleagues in passing a bipartisan national security supplemental, without border policy and funding provisions, by a vote of 70-29; in terms of funding, the House-passed supplemental is materially identical to the Senate supplemental in nearly every way.
Senator Murray’s remarks, as delivered, are below:
“Thank you, M. President.
“M. President, I have been warning for months about the need to meet this moment of global uncertainty and chaos with a robust national security supplemental.
“Not delay. Not half steps.
“But investments that show the world we are serious about standing by all of our allies, providing humanitarian aid, and maintaining America’s leadership on the world stage.
“Which is why I’m glad the House sent us legislation that includes every pillar of the package we passed overwhelmingly here in the Senate.
“And I hope now we can all come together to pass these policies once again.
“We cannot send the message that division has won out against action, that isolationism has won out against leadership.
“Because the challenges we face—and that our allies face—are immense, urgent, and interconnected!
“Putin is waging a brutal invasion of Ukraine—which is running low on supplies.
“The war between Israel and Hamas, threatens to escalate into a far more dangerous regional conflict.
“Civilians caught in conflict desperately need food, water, medical care, and other humanitarian aid.
“And the Chinese government is making aggressive moves to grow its influence in the Indo-Pacific.
“Those are the stakes of this moment—as I have reminded my colleagues time and time and time again.
“Inaction cannot be an option.
“We need to meet this moment, address all the challenges before us, and show the world American leadership is still strong.
“I believe that strongly—and I know, when push comes to shove a clear majority of members on both sides of the aisle, in both chambers of Congress feel the same way.
“That’s why I have come to the floor so many times over the past several months to lay out in painstaking detail how much is at stake, and how crucial it is we meet this moment with a robust package that addresses the many, interconnected challenges before us.
“It is why, here in the Senate—we took action over two months ago now, and overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan national security supplemental.
“I, and many others—Vice Chair Collins, Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, all worked very hard over months to craft legislation that could pass both the Senate and the House—that both Democrats and Republicans could get behind.
“So, I am glad we are now working to pass the national security supplemental the House sent over—particularly since it is materially identical to the Senate package that we cleared with such great support.
“Now, I have to say, I am relieved to see Speaker Johnson finallydo the right thing, ignore the far-right, and send us what is essentially the bill we wrote and passed months ago.
“But let’s be clear about a few things: this delay has not been harmless.
“Putin’s forces have been on the march, his missiles—and Iranian-made drones—have been striking critical Ukrainian infrastructure.
“We measure time in hours. Ukrainians are measuring it in how many bullets they have left, how many more missiles fall on their cities, and how much closer Putin’s tanks are getting.
“That was clear—even before I said that two months ago.
“And the path forward—the path we are finally now on—was painfully clear.
“Because, unfortunately, we have seen this movie before in debt limit negotiations and in funding the government.
“I believe Congress can actually work together. We can actually hammer out a compromise.
“Not the bill either party would write on their own—but one that gets the job done.
“And let’s be clear, this package before us gets the job done.
“It gets aid to soldiers in Ukraine who are counting their bullets and wondering how long they can hold out.
“It gets support to Israel, which faces serious threats on all fronts.
“It gets support to our allies in the Indo-Pacific where the Chinese government has been posturing aggressively.
“And, it gets crucial humanitarian aid to civilians in Ukraine, Sudan, and Gaza—including kids who are caught in the crossfire—who are in desperate need of food, and water, and medical care.
“That was a red line for me. I have pushed hard at every stage to make sure we provide humanitarian aid.
“At every stage of these negotiations, I made clear: Congress will not advance a supplemental that fails civilians.
“I will not let us turn our back on women and children who are suffering, and who are often hit hardest by the fallout of chaos and conflict.
“M. President, at a time when the world is watching, and wondering if the U.S. is still capable of meeting the challenges before us if we are still united enough to meet them!
“This package won’t just send aid, it will send a message.
“It will show our allies our word is still good, and we will stand by them in times of need.
“It will show dictators that our warnings are serious, and we will not let their flagrant attacks go unchecked.
“And it will show the world that American leadership is still alive and well, and we are still a strong protector of democracy, and provider of humanitarian aid.
“That’s a message that’s well worth sending—now more than ever.
“So, while I wish we were able to wrap this up much sooner, I am glad we are at this final threshold now. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on the final package.”
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