***VIDEO: Senator Murray speaks on Senate Floor**
Washington DC - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray objected to an attempt to pass House Republicans’ Israel aid package and led a number of her colleagues on the floor in underscoring the importance of a serious, comprehensive package to deliver aid to Ukraine, Israel, and our partners in the Indo-Pacific and provide urgent humanitarian aid to civilians caught in conflict. Video is AQUÍ.
Senator Murray’s remarks, as delivered, are below:
“M. President, reserving the right to object, there are some fundamental flaws in the arguments my colleagues are making for the Senate do only half of its job—to say nothing of the partisan, so called “pay-for” here—which is a giveaway to billionaires that actually costs our nation money, and sets a dangerous precedent that our allies are fair game to be used as partisan bargaining chips.
“First, we should not pit funding for Israel against funding for Ukraine and other needs. There is no need given the widespread support for providing assistance to both nations on both sides of this aisle.
“There is strong support for providing the assistance the President requested for Israel.
“And there are also bipartisan super majorities in both the House and Senate in favor of Ukraine aid.
“That is because most of us, on both sides of the aisle, understand that while there are important differences, the challenges we and our allies are facing around the world today are connected.
“Just last month, over three hundred House members voted for Ukraine aid—so pretending that this doesn’t have the votes to pass the House simply does not pass muster.
“There is strong support here in Congress to address these urgent priorities in one package—and that is exactly what I am working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do right now.
“Secondly, our allies in Ukraine can no more afford a delay than our allies in Israel—Ukraine is at a critical point in a brutal war to defend its sovereignty against Putin’s bloody invasion.
“We must not give Putin a win and throw Ukraine to the wolves for political expediency.
“After all, what sort of message does it send about our commitment to our allies if we delay Ukraine aid further?
“Especially after we have already missed our earlier opportunities to get this done?
“For American leadership to have any weight in the world—our word has to mean something.
“Our commitments have to be ironclad.
“That means we do not abandon our allies in their time of need. Period.
“Failing to stand by Ukraine now will only embolden Putin, and other dictators looking to trample democracies.
“Which brings me to my last point—while the challenges that we and our partners face across the globe have different natures and nuances—we have to be strategic enough to understand that they are connected, they are urgent, and they should be addressed as part of one package.
“The Chinese government is watching how we respond to Putin’s aggression in Ukraine.
“Putin is wanting the Hamas attack to give him an opening to distract the world from aiding Ukraine against his brutal invasion
“In fact, we know that a Hamas delegation visited Moscow recently! So let’s stop pretending there is no common thread.
“And make no mistake, Hamas is hoping that we ignore the humanitarian needs in Gaza, so it can drive people to despair, and anger, and, ultimately, extremism.
“When it comes to humanitarian aid, making sure people have food, water, and medical care isn’t just the right and moral thing to do, it also is very clearly in our national interest as it promotes long-term stability and security—combatting hopelessness that can spiral into new threats.
“Our adversaries are watching closely to see whether we have the vision to recognize how these crises are related, and the resolve to come together and respond forcefully to them.
“We need to send a strong message—and the way we do that is by passing a strong security package.
“We are working together right now to get that done right now—and I urge all of our colleagues to support us in those efforts.”
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