Biden’s Address Must Correct for His Failure to Outline a Ukraine Strategy

Last weekend, Congress passed a spending bill to keep the government open, but, because of resistance from House Republicans, the bill did not include new financial assistance for Ukraine. Mainstream accounts chalked up GOP opposition to isolationist sentiment within the party, but this analysis misplaces the blame. GOP skepticism is partly a result of Biden’s lack of a clear plan for Ukraine. If Biden wants to win over Republicans on Capitol Hill — including those like J. D. Vance, who thinks that the president is doing too much, and those like Tom Cotton, who thinks he is not doing enough — then he needs to lay out a compelling strategy for victory to the American people.

Let us look at what former House speaker Kevin McCarthy said about GOP opposition to additional aid to Ukraine in a press conference. He asked rhetorically, “What is the plan for victory? I think that is what the American public wants to know.”