House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) scored his first big legislative victory this month, making good on the first promises he made in leadership that he would find a way to send much-needed aid to our allies Israel and Ukraine.
Contrary to what some are saying, Johnson supported more aid for Ukraine from the start of his speakership. Just two days after securing the job, Johnson told Fox News’s Sean Hannity, “We can’t allow Vladimir Putin to prevail in Ukraine because I don’t believe it would stop there, and it would probably encourage and empower China to perhaps make a move on Taiwan.”
Johnson was right then, and he is right now. His only misstep was agreeing with President Joe Biden and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) that the best path forward was to link Ukraine aid with border security. Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion had nothing to do with Biden’s catch-and-release border policies in October of last year, and it still has nothing to do with them today.
Securing our southern border is absolutely a vital national security concern, but there is only so much Republicans can do to solve the problem when they control just one chamber of Congress. It is going to take a strong occupant of the White House with the will and determination needed to force Mexican cooperation to get the border under control again. Biden is not that man, and he never will be. The most Republicans can accomplish on border security is to avoid making the problem worse by bailing out sanctuary cities and codifying Biden’s catch-and-release policies. That is what the Mayorkas-Lankford border bill did, and Johnson was wise to reject it.
While Biden’s failure to secure the border is not connected to Ukraine’s fight against Russia, this is not the case with Israel’s fight against Hamas and our struggle against Chinese aggression. Iran is a strong supporter of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine both diplomatically and militarily. Tehran has both blocked anti-Russia resolutions at the United Nations and supplied arms and training, most prevalently drones, to the Russian offensive. Bleeding Russian-Iranian forces in Ukraine means fewer resources Iran can devote to its proxy Hamas against Israel.
The only country whose support has been more necessary for Russia than Iran is China. China has been a lifeline for Russian energy products, which now face sanctions by Europe and the United States. China has also been a key supplier of ammunition and weapons systems for the Russian war effort. The inclusion of aid to Taiwan and the forced sale of TikTok in the series of bills are both policies that can help contain Chinese interference and aggression.
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It is unclear if the more chaotic elements of the House Republican Conference will now use this Ukraine aid as an excuse to try and remove Johnson from the speaker’s office. While Johnson should not encourage these elements to start such a fight, he should not be afraid of them, either. The crazy caucus is going to do what the crazy caucus does, and ultimately, there is little Johnson can do to make its members happy.
Strategically, however, it was wise of Johnson to fly down to Mar-a-Lago and secure former President Donald Trump’s blessing for the Ukraine aid legislation. As much as this editorial page may wish otherwise, Trump is now the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, so it was astute to secure relations with him. If the Republicans maintain the House and gain the White House this fall, Johnson will be proving an effective lawmaker.
