Democrats to decouple Ukraine, COVID-19 funds – Roll Call
Still, it wasn’t immediately clear whether Republicans would agree to Democrats’ beefed-up Ukraine aid proposal, which was first reported by Punchbowl News. “No agreement has been reached and discussions are ongoing,” Blair Taylor, a spokeswoman for Richard C. Shelby, R-Ala., the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said.
A source familiar with the talks who spoke on condition of anonymity said negotiations were ongoing but that the latest offer represents “input” from Republicans. Another source familiar with the talks said initial GOP reaction has been favorable so far, and that the House could vote on the not-yet-unveiled package as soon as Tuesday.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Biden made a good decision in asking for the Ukraine and pandemic funding to be split. He said he hadn’t seen the most recent numbers for the package.
“I don’t care, as long as the money is going to help the war cause,” he said. “It’s in our interest, defeating Putin is priceless.”
Graham said he wanted to get his resolution to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism into the package.
