Congress returns next Monday – Ukraine concerns

Congress is scheduled to return next Monday, September 9th, and is planning to recess until after the Election on Friday, September 27th. That is only three weeks, and there is a loaded agenda.

This is not comprehensive, but here are a few things relating to Ukraine that we should keep in mind as Congressmen and Senators come back into session: the National Defense Authorization Act and Department of Defense spending legislation.

FUNDING THE GOVERNMENT

It is hard to see—actually impossible to see—Congress having the time in these three weeks to either enact all of the appropriations bills for FY25 or to come to an agreement on a full-year spending deal. So, we will be back to the familiar and distasteful need for a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government running beyond the end of the Fiscal Year (October 1).

Even though the House passed its version of defense appropriations before the end of June and the Senate Committee on Appropriations approved its version in July, it appears the two versions will not be reconciled until after the election.  If true, the Department of Defense will need to be part of a CR.

Under a continuing resolution, the Pentagon (and other departments and agencies) will be stuck at the previous year’s funding levels, unable to start new programs unless there are exceptions in the CR.

We have urged that the Administration ask for additional military aid for Ukraine to be included in any CR so that we will be watching.  While lawmakers are arguing for more money for Ukraine, the inclusion of such a request would bring out the “no to Ukraine” crowd, which is blind to the critical importance of a Ukrainian victory to our own national security interests.   They remain a minority within the House Republican Caucus but they and their few Senate counterparts cause problems beyond their numbers.

In this context, I continue to note that Members—both supporters and opponents of Ukraine—continue to say they hear very little from constituents supporting Ukraine. Congressional offices keep track of such communications, and, given all those in favor of Ukraine defeating Putin, Members not hearing support for Ukraine is inexcusable.

It is also worth noting that one other item likely to complicate the passage of a CR is a House Republican plan to add a requirement of proof of citizenship to register to vote.

FY25 DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION

Here again, the House passed its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in June, and the Senate Committee on Armed Services reported its version in June, but it was not brought to the Senate floor before the recess.

Word is that Majority Leader Schumer is not likely to schedule the floor debate with so little time before Congress recesses for the election.  It is expected that the NDAA will face hundreds of amendments on the Senate floor, many of which might force Senators to cast votes they would rather not cast until after the election.

The bottom line is that considerable work will eventually need to be done to reconcile the House and Senate versions once the Senate acts, and this will not happen until after the election.

ROBERT MCCONNELL
Co-Founder, U.S.-Ukraine Foundation
Director of External Affairs, Friends of Ukraine Network

This email expresses Mr. McConnell’s view and does not necessarily represent the views of the U.S.-Ukraine Foundation or those of the Friends of Ukraine Network (FOUN).

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