Today I joined 190 of my Democratic colleagues by signing a discharge petition in an effort to finally get the House to take action toward providing aid for Ukraine, where soldiers are literally rationing bullets as they fight against Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked invasion of their country. Ukraine’s air defenses are dwindling and just this week, Kyiv saw the most intense missile attacks since last spring.  

Republicans who control the House have refused to bring this issue to a vote and sat for far too long doing nothing to make progress toward a deal on a national security package. If this petition reaches 218 signatures, it will finally allow us to consider the Senate’s bipartisan proposal, start negotiations in the House, and bring a funding package to a vote. We need movement on providing aid for Ukraine and humanitarian assistance for the millions of innocent civilians in conflict zones, including in Gaza. I will carefully weigh the details of any future bill proposal and the realities of achieving these two goals through compromise. 

The Senate proposal includes $60 billion to support Ukraine as it defends its sovereignty against Putin’s relentless, bloody attacks. It also includes $9.15 billion in desperately-needed humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, Ukraine, Somalia, and other populations caught in conflict zones across the globe. I will withhold a final decision on a package until the details are presented, however as my voting record has shown, any bill I would support must include aid to Ukraine and Gaza. I have heard from so many constituents who want us to live up to our commitments to our Ukrainian allies and to provide food, water, shelter, medical care and other essential services to the civilians suffering in Gaza. This discharge petition is the first step in achieving movement toward these goals and bringing a negotiated national security bill to a vote.  

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