Three major contenders have emerged in the GOP for next House Speaker: House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (La.), Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio) and Republican Study Committee Chair Kevin Hern (Okla.).
Jordan, who has the support of former President Trump, said he is “against” any more Ukraine aid.
“The most pressing issue on Americans’ minds is not Ukraine,” Jordan said this week. “It’s the border situation, and it’s crime on the streets.”
Hern has echoed that skepticism: “We want to know where the American taxpayer dollars are going and what’s the endgame.”
The House, under pressure from a band of ultraconservative rebels who joined Democrats to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker, stripped Ukraine funding from a spending bill passed last week.
That has infuriated senators from both parties, who are largely united on the topic of Ukraine aid and are pushing for another package. However, they will need support from the next Speaker.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon warned this week that current funding available to help Ukraine is quickly running out.
The group Republicans for Ukraine released a report card ranking Scalise with a “B,” and both Jordan and Hern with an “F” on the topic of Ukraine, based on voting records.
A project of the conservative, anti-Trump organization Defending Democracy Together, Republicans for Ukraine launched a new political ad urging the next Speaker to back Kyiv.
“Pro-Ukraine House Republicans should insist that the next Speaker bring a Ukraine bill to the floor for a vote,” a spokesman for the group said.
