Nebraska U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts said he believes military aid to Ukraine supports America’s security interests, but he felt he couldn’t vote for it this week without action first on the U.S. southern border.
“That’s the most pressing national security issue we have right now,†Ricketts said of border security during a call with Nebraska reporters Wednesday.
In a bipartisan vote early Tuesday, the Senate passed a $95 billion emergency defense spending bill that included $60 billion in aid for Ukraine, as well as billions for Israel and Taiwan.
Among those supporting the bill in the 70-29 vote were 22 Republicans, including Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. But most Republicans opposed it, including Ricketts and fellow Nebraskan Deb Fischer.
The Senate decided to pass the military aid in a stand-alone bill after a bipartisan effort to link the aid to border security measures collapsed in the face of Republican opposition.
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Republicans said the border measures did not go far enough. GOP members also faced pressure to oppose the measure after Donald Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee, came out against it.
Ricketts said he voted against the stand-alone bill in an effort to bring Democrats “back to the negotiating table†for more stringent border security measures. He blames President Joe Biden for the crisis at the southern border, which he said was caused when Biden rescinded measures Trump had taken as president to secure the border.
But Ricketts also said the military aid — including the Ukraine aid that some Republicans launched an hours-long filibuster against — is critical. He said if Russian President Vladimir Putin is successful in conquering Ukraine, he won’t stop there, possibly invading another neighboring country that the United States is committed under NATO to defend.
“That is World War III,†Ricketts said. “If we want to avoid sending our young women and men to Europe to fight in a war against Vladimir Putin, the way to do that is give Ukraine weapons they need to fight him now.â€
Ricketts said the Ukraine aid is also often framed the wrong way. The weapons and ammunition that the United States provides as aid allows the U.S. military to refresh its own stocks and also rebuilds the nation’s industrial arms capacity. He said that’s important at a time America faces numerous global threats.
The fate of the Ukraine aid bill faces uncertainty in the House, as it’s unclear whether Republican Speaker Mike Johnson will even bring it up for a vote.
Ricketts declined to speculate on whether there were any circumstances in which he would support Ukraine aid not linked to border security.