White House: Funds for Ukraine Running Out Unless Congress Acts

Facts

• The White House on Monday sounded the alarm to Congress, warning lawmakers that unless more military aid to Ukraine is approved soon, the pot of available funds will run dry.¹
• In a letter to GOP and Democrat leaders in both the House and Senate, Shalanda Young, director of the White House's Office of Management and Budget, urged Congress to act immediately.²
• 'I want to be clear: without congressional action, by the end of the year we will run out of resources to procure more weapons and equipment for Ukraine and to provide equipment from US military stocks,' Young said. 'There is no magical pot of funding available to meet this moment. We are out of money—and nearly out of time.'²
• Young warned that if no action was taken before the end of the year, it would 'kneecap Ukraine on the battlefield.' She added that US shipments of aid and military equipment have already begun to get smaller in recent weeks. 'If our assistance stops, it will cause significant issues for Ukraine.'¹
• The letter spelled out how the Pentagon has used 97% of the $62.3B it had received for Ukraine as of mid-November. The State Department, meanwhile, had exhausted all of the $4.7B in funding it received. US Pres. Joe Biden has also funded Ukraine's war effort via the use of a mechanism called the Presidential Drawdown Authority — a lesser-known executive power that allows the president to send military aid without the approval of Congress.¹
• In making the case for Congress to approve additional aid, Young said that if Biden's request for roughly $106B in security assistance is approved — $61.4B of which will go to Ukraine — it would benefit the US arms industry to the tune of $50B. Young name-checked several states — including Alabama, Texas and Georgia — that would benefit from increased arms manufacturing and employment in factories there.¹

Sources: ¹Politico and ²The Hill.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by Politico. The White House is now reaching a point where unless the Republican-led Congress acts and approves further aid to Ukraine, the Administration is handcuffed on what more it can send. That would have devastating impacts on Ukraine's war effort, likely reversing its advances and paving the way for Russian military gains. Congress needs to end its inaction immediately.
• Right narrative, as provided by The Hill. In spite of over $113B in US funding, the front lines in Ukraine have barely shifted in months of fighting. As such, Americans are right to ask what the strategy is and how the war will eventually be brought to a close. The US cannot be expected to continually throw money at the war, particularly with problems at home and with the national debt spiraling to over $5T.

Predictions