In a rebellion defying the priorities of Speaker Mike Johnson, House Democrats have teamed up with two Republicans and an independent in a parliamentary maneuver that will force a vote on a bill that would give another $1.3 billion in military aid and other assistance to Ukraine, as that country continues to lose territory in its war with Russia.
"We look forward to seeing the House pass this bill quickly and encourage the Senate to take it up without delay. The brave men and women of Ukraine are waiting," said NY Rep. Gregory Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the author of the bill.
All 215 House Democrats signed a discharge petition, a means by which representatives can bypass House leadership's agenda-setting role and compel a vote on a bill. Seldom used over House history, discharge petitions are showing their potency in a House ruled by a narrow majority, as is the case today. Most famously, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna used the maneuver last year to compel a vote on forcing the release of the Epstein investigation files. For this Ukraine bill, the Democrats were joined by two Republicans -- Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon -- along with California independent Kevin Kiley, who earlier this year left the GOP.
Kiley's signature on the petition pushed to the required 218. "Recent Ukrainian gains have created an opportunity for peace, but the collapse of the recent ceasefire shows that leverage is needed for diplomacy to succeed," he said in a statement. That will force Johnson to bring a vote to the floor on the Ukraine Support Act, which has three major thrusts:
- Reaffirming US support for both Ukraine and NATO, and enacting measures for Ukraine's reconstruction
- $1.3 billion in aid and -- get this -- up to $8 billion more in direct loans that could prove to be LINOs -- loans in name only
- More sanctions and export controls on Russia, targeting officials, financial institutions, and the oil and mining sectors
Though the House may pass the bill, the push to give more money to Ukraine will face an uphill climb in the Senate. The discharge-petition development comes as Ukraine and Russia moved on from a brief ceasefire and resumed blasting each other, though -- for now -- at a reduced tempo. Russia has continued to make gradual progress in taking control of both the Luhansk and Donetsk "oblasts" which together comprise the Donbas region of Eastern Ukraine. Moscow is insisting that Ukraine's ceding of the last parts of the Donbas is a precondition to resumed peace talks.
Not accounting for another potential $1.3 billion thrown into the Ukraine war -- to say nothing of the money pit that is the US-Israeli war on Iran -- the US government was in February projected to post a fiscal-year 2026 deficit of $1.9 trillion. Not that anyone in Washington cares.