Well, there’s lots to unpack about the election denying MAGA fire breathing (despite his demeanor) Trump butthole licker Mike Johnson who is now Speaker of the House. Much will be written in the days and weeks ahead but I watched his speech he gave before taking his oath. I wouldn’t be surprised if my screaming and cursing wasn’t loud enough that neighboring apartments called the management office to complain. Early on he made clear that this afternoon he’ll call up a vote for aid to Israel.
Israel.
I don’t have a problem with that. What I DO have a problem with is he made NO mention of another country for whom aid needs to be approved
Ukraine.
Johnson was once a supporter of helping Ukraine. Over time that changed. Because as I said his lips are super-glued to Trump’s fat orange butt and Trump wants Putin to have whatever Putin wants. Ukraine happens to be something Putin wants and Trump is desperate for help from any quarter these days. He failed “Pootie” by only weakening instead of destroying NATO and as a result, when Ukraine proved not only fiercely willing but quite capable of effectively fighting the Russian invaders NATO stepped up right away. With President Biden’s leadership NATO and other free countries rallied to Ukraine’s assistance.
I could write more than one long article about the importance of Ukraine being free of Russian control. Most reasonably informed people know how Russia has used oil and especially natural gas as an economic weapon against Europe, and gotten away with it for too long. What people don’t always get is Ukraine’s importance to the world’s food supply. Not just in production (it’s one of the top handful producers of grains) but in shipping food (grains) to the rest of the world. If Russia controls Ukraine in addition to Crimea it controls the majority of the world’s grain supplies! Look at the map in the title pic. Control of Ukraine would give them control of shipping of grains on the Black Sea and in turn make it much easier for them to get away with using their control of the passage to the Mediterranean. That, along with oil gives them a real bargaining position with China.
In any case, as The Hill notes in this article Speaker Johnson initially condemned Russia’s attempted takeover of Ukraine. He strongly supported sanctions and providing aid. That was then. He has since decided to sing a different tune:
However, in recent times, he has taken a skeptical stance toward aid for Ukraine. He voted against two different appropriations bills that provided aid to Ukraine in 2022 and just last month.
“American taxpayers have sent over $100 billion in aid to Ukraine in the last year,” Johnson said in an X post in February. “They deserve to know if the Ukrainian government is being entirely forthcoming and transparent about the use of this massive sum of taxpayer resources.”
It will be interesting to see if as Johnson promised an aid package is brought before the House today. There’s a WH proposal for 106 billion in aid including 60b for Ukraine with strong bi-partisan support in the Senate. Yes, as The Guardian reports McConnell is not only on-board, he flat-out rejected a letter from Senator Lew and a handful of others to strip out Ukraine funding. So there’s a proposal that will provide aid to both Israel and Ukraine ready to go. However, as Speaker Johnson can have a quick chat the the House Rules Committee that could make it easy to strip out the Ukraine portion of funding out and you can be sure the effort will be made in the House to make Trump happy by blocking any more aid to them.
Not just Ukraine but the world was watching and Johnson, in his slick “reasonable” sounding mode if effect told Ukraine to f**k off. With them gaining more and more ground in their counter-offensive now that they’ve adjusted their approach (that’s another long article, but trust this old ground-pounder jarhead on this) Russia and those who still support it needed a shot of adrenaline to the heart.
Johnson just gave it to them. While at the same time burying an axe in Ukraine’s head.
I needed something to pull me out of my depression and this did the trick. It sure as hell wasn’t the kind of pick-me-up I’d hoped for but before writing this I had a rather pointed chat with a staffer at the office of a Congress Critter from my very own hometown. He’s a few years younger than me but he knows who I am. In fact his sister and I were classmates and once, despite differences in political views friendly. I managed to control my rage enough to not go jarhead grunt in my language and cause him to hang up but I made it quite clear how despicable it was for Bost to have voted for Johnson. Then I started writing this. Next I’ll be contacting Johnson’s office, and my own Representative who’s a Democrat and reminding her of my connection to Bost and suggest she use my name to try and shame that little turd.
Call and/or write to your Representatives and make it clear that along with Israel we HAVE to approve more aid for Ukraine.
2024 folks. Time to wipe the ‘pubes off the f*cking map. Permanently.
Agreed Spike, but there are two large obstacles in our path: the abject stupidity of most of the GOP voters and all those carefully gerrymandered voting districts. I think the districts may well be the biggest hurdles.
A FASCIST JUST BECAME SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE!!! THIS IS A DECLARATION OF WAR!!! I’ll be damned if all those boys who died fighting to establish this goddamn democracy and died to stop Hitler will be forgotten! Take a piss on their graves and try to force fascism down my goddamn throat…you better expect a goddamn fight! You think you are safe? Better reconsider assholes! Your fancy suits won’t save your asses. Everyone talks about the fear of maga…you better look around. Those fatasses are riding around in SUVs and scooters. What makes you think the majority of us can’t be radicalized??? If Israel hadnt been running a prison camp on the Palestinians since 1948…you’d have no Hamas controlling Gaza since 2007. I don’t want bloodshed anywhere at anytime since we’re all stuck here on planet earth together. That being said I’ve stood my ground since the age of five with an armed rage machine, and later in the pen. You phuckers are marshmallows to me. People of privilege don’t REALLY have the stones when they face real violence. They’re fine with others fighting their battles. My children WILL NOT LIVE IN A COUNTRY RUN BY TRUMP! OVER MY GODDAMN DEAD BODY! Wake up America and stop these assholes NEXT NOVEMBER!!!!!!!!
^^^^^THIS x 1000000000!^^^^^^
Scott, I fear that this evangelical bigot of a speaker will unleash a shitstorm of fascist legislation upon us, but I also believe that said shitstorm will finally awaken the dormant majority to see what the Repugnican party wants: a Trump tyranny.
Funny how Johnson wants Ukraine to be “entirely forthcoming and transparent about the use of this massive sum of taxpayer resources.”
I just wish certain members of the US government would hold Israel to that same standard. We’ve sent them HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS of dollars in aid over the decades (actually it’s probably in the tens of trillions but that’s a quibble) and yet the government has largely just accepted Israel’s “word” that it’s being used the way it’s supposed to (probably a better phrasing would be “not being used in the way it’s not supposed to”–as in helping to fund the Israeli settlements on the West Bank). Hell, Israel has not once allowed UN inspectors into the country to verify Israel’s nuclear program is being used solely for peaceful purposes (at least not without demanding “advance notice”–no surprise inspections as the US has demanded of Iran’s facilities or as the US demanded of Iraq’s facilities).
And yet, the same folks who have issues with sending disaster aid to countries that have suffered from earthquakes and tsunamis and massive flooding without getting guarantees or issuing some kind of quid pro quo contingency on that relief just blindly help fund Israel’s settlement program with virtually no oversight or anything.
Israel’s nuclear program and weapons have always been a murky issue. They of course maintain they don’t have nuclear weapons but reliable intelligence including our own know that’s bullshit. However, from early on every President from Eisenhower on has had to put up with Israel’s obstinance about allowing inspections at Dimona in particular. For the U.S. there’s been the additional embarrassing fact that the CIA assessed a half-century ago that Israel’s first two nuclear bombs were made with material stolen from here in the United States! For an ally, they have caused us a lot of headaches. There’s that, the attack on the Liberty, the ignoring of the U.N. and building settlements in the West Bank, their contempt towards us and especially my Marine Corps during their fucked up attempt to take over Lebanon, Jonathan Pollard. It’s a long list of them poking the United States without whose support there wouldn’t be a State of Israel in the eye. Yet at times they’ve been a useful partner. And we might need them to do again what they’ve done in the past and send aircraft to destroy something in Iran. Or take some other action there with our tacit encouragement/approval.
It’s a complicated as hell relationship in the best of times but when a right wing fanatic is in charge (and Netanyahu is!) it gets much more so. We have to prop them up but we pay a price beyond dollars for doing so. I’m okay with that but their fucking attitude about sometimes making a point of flaunting their doing whatever the hell they want because they know there’s little we can do about it is irritating as hell.
I’ve also wondered where all that money goes to in such a small country. I know the iron dome is expensive and I think that’s a great achievement but we give them a lot. I heard they had millions available to them instantly without any need for Congress to give them more. Im not saying they shouldn’t get some aid but what is it for? Does anyone here have the $$ numbers annually?
I hate to.say this, but unlike the Free dumb Caucus, Johnson actually believes the Biblical.BS he spouts. Of course he wants to rush aid to Israel. There must be a Jewish Homeland for the End Times to comet’s be every fundygelical loony looks forward to.that with the intensity of an 8 year old boy awaiting Xmas Day.
As for Ukraine, let us face the fact that Putin is a fascist, not a communist, which allows the GOP.some cover for kinda sorta not full bore attacking him. Toss in “fiscal responsibility” which means $$$$$$$ parsimony when they think no one is noticing, he just sums up the GOP.views on aid to foreign countries. Sure he was for aid to Ukraine until.he realized it likely wasn’t getting us anything at all sincewe have tons of wheat and other grains stockpiled and it was costing g us big bucks. TBE GOP.is for defending other democracies so long as it doesn’t cost too.much.