Pompeo puts support behind Johnson in pushing aid for Ukraine

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has come out in support of House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) plan to deliver U.S. aid for Ukraine, part of an effort to bolster defenses around the Speaker as he bucks hard-line conservative opponents in his party.

In a letter sent to Johnson on Thursday, Pompeo applauded him for moving ahead to “secure vital support to America’s allies and to strengthen America’s defenses.”

“The danger to Americans is clear and it is present. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has declared his aim to create a new Russian empire and has been working toward that goal for decades,” Pompeo, who served under former President Trump, wrote in the letter. It was co-authored by retired four-star Gen. Jack Keane, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2020 from Trump.

The letter seeks to counter GOP lawmakers and conservatives who are embracing Trump’s MAGA isolationist movement and criticizing U.S. support for Ukraine. 

While Trump has put support behind Johnson amid threats to oust him for moving forward on Ukraine aid, the former president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee has amplified grievances that U.S. support for allies abroad should not supersede American problems at home. 

Republican supporters of aid for Ukraine and Democrats argue that America can support allies and partners abroad while also investing in the U.S. 

“Opponents of supporting Ukraine have been allowed to misrepresent the nature of that assistance for too long,” Pompeo and Keane wrote.

“No one is asking Americans to fight or die for Ukraine, least of all Ukrainians. No one is asking American taxpayers simply to hand Ukraine tens of billions of dollars. On the contrary, the overwhelming majority of the money spent on aid to Ukraine is helping rebuild America’s defense industry.”

Pompeo and Keane continued, “We support aiding Ukraine because that is the best way to help Americans; the best way to reduce the risk that future generations will have to take up arms in Europe, the Middle East, or Asia. Winston Churchill warned that while free nations sleep, dictators plan. No nation is ever served by ignoring the ambitions of its enemies.”