As of mid-January, global aid to Ukraine has reached what the Kiel Institute for the World Economy described as the “staggering” amount of $278 billion.
This means that Ukraine has actually had more money than Russia has been able to spend on this war.
Russia’s total GDP of $1.8 trillion is just slightly over California’s GDP and only about eight percent of the total U.S. GDP of over $23 trillion.
The Congress has previously committed $114 billion to the Ukrainian war effort, and far too many in Congress want to give them $61 billion more.
They can far too easily vote for amounts like this because it is almost impossible to humanly comprehend how much $175 billion is, and because the easiest thing in the world to do is spend other people’s money.
If Ukraine loses this war, as it appears they may be close to doing, it will not be for lack of money, and it will certainly not be because the U.S. has not sent this last $61 billion.
The Democrats are masters of public relations, and it is easier for them since most of the national media has been an arm of the Democrat National Committee for many years.
They are aided, too, by having the bully pulpit of the White House. This is not as big an advantage as usual with the weakest president ever in the White House, but it does give the Democrats control over what is reported by every department and agency.
The Democrats in Congress are crying crocodile tears over Ukraine. They see the handwriting on the wall and seem to be convinced of a Russian victory.
They seem to be salivating over a Ukrainian defeat that they can then blame on Republicans in the House for holding up this last $61 billion. The Democrats will never mention the $278 billion Ukraine has already received from all over the world.
Just before this present war started, the Ukraine government was rated as one of the most corrupt in the world. I hate to think how much of this U.S. taxpayer money has already been wasted and/or stolen.
The Democrats never gave a whit about Ukraine until they panicked over the 2022 mid-term elections. Polls showed that because of crime, high gas prices, and high inflation, the Republicans were about to make big gains.
Even Sen. Bernie Sanders said it would be “political malpractice” to rely just on the abortion issue. But polls showed tremendous sympathy for poor, little Ukraine being invaded by big, bad Russia.
Democrat candidates, especially incumbents, latched on to Ukraine for all it was worth. Both before mid-terms and since, the Democrats have constantly portrayed themselves (falsely) as Ukraine’s greatest defender, and Congressional Republicans as mean, selfish, and supporters of bad boy Putin.
In doing this, they have shown little or no concern for U.S. taxpayers and little or no interest in defending our borders.
Aiding the Democrats in this effort have been the big four U.S. defense contractors.
I voted for the first Gulf War in 1991 after hearing all our top officials tell us how great a threat Saddam Hussein and his “elite” troops were and how he was the second coming of Hitler.
I then saw these same “elite” troops surrendering to camera crews and empty tanks and realized how the threat had been greatly exaggerated.
After a few years in Washington, I saw that every department greatly exaggerated the problem or threat they were dealing with so they could keep getting more money, and the Defense Department was the best at this game.
Most of our wars have been more about money and power than any great threats.
If you doubt this, read the first major speech President Eisenhower gave after assuming the presidency. It was a speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors on April 18, 1953. It is probably the most anti-war speech ever given by a U.S. President.
Then read Eisenhower’s much better-known farewell address given on Jan. 17, 1961, where he warned us about the evils of military-industrial complexes.
And these were words given by a man who spent almost all of his career in the military.
This is why I sometimes call myself an Eisenhower Republican. Except for a very brief recession in 1958, he gave us eight years of peace and prosperity. He had to fight a Democrat congress for six of his eight years in office, issuing 181 vetoes, only two of which were overturned.
Reprinted with author’s permission from The Knoxville Focus.
John James Duncan Jr. is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Tennessee’s 2nd congressional district from 1988 to 2019. A lawyer, former judge, and former long serving member of the Army National Guard, he is a member of the Republican Party. He is a member of the Ron Paul Institute Advisory Board.
