Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. WALTZ. Mr. Chair, my colleagues and I have led the charge on stopping Putin in the face of Biden's too little, too late strategy, but before we go any further, we have asked for four simple things: a strategy to get us out of this stalemate, to protect the U.S. border as our first principle, a real burden-sharing with the Europeans, and a smart energy policy.

We got none of that, Mr. Chair. Yet, 2\1/2\ years into this war, we still don't know what success looks like. Is it Crimea? Is it all of the Donbas? Is it hold what you have? We don't know because President Biden won't tell us and the American people.

We must close the U.S. border and defend it as a matter of first principle. It is not an either/or, but it is a matter of priorities.

We hear the EU and NATO are doing all they can. Baloney. They can't do more because only 11 out of 31 are contributing the bare minimum to its defense. If they won't do it now, Mr. Chair, then when will they?

Most offensive, if we drive down the price of oil below $50 a barrel, Putin's war machine is done. I can no longer in good conscience ask the American people to dig deeper behind a blank check, behind bad strategies and bad policy. We just can't afford it anymore.

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