 | BY CALDER MCHUGH | | 
Ukrainian soldiers drive in a military vehicle on a road near the town of Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region on April 2, 2024. | Roman Pilipey/AFP via Getty Images | TIMELY INFUSION — Earlier today the Senate voted 80-19 to advance a $95 billion foreign aid package that will dole out cash to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan, putting the initiative — which was held up for months in the House — on the precipice of passing. And while some Senate Republicans still registered their disapproval, many who had previously come out against the package — including Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Katie Britt of Alabama and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, voted in favor of the procedural vote that cleared the aid through an important hurdle. Now, final passage of the bill looks like a foregone conclusion that could happen as soon as later this evening. The domestic political complications of the contentious aid package — which have slowed U.S. aid to Ukraine, in particular — have had significant consequences in the war effort, as Russia has gained momentum in the country, putting Putin on the verge of a victory within months without reinforcements. In the case of Israel, domestic opposition has come more from the left, as some House members have expressed frustration at the United States continuing to hand Israel “blank checks” as it wages war in Gaza. That frustration, which has boiled over this week outside of Congress, didn’t stop Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate leaders Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell from threading the bipartisan needle on the passage of the aid. But where exactly is that American money going? And what does the future of these conflicts — and U.S. involvement in them — look like? To get a better idea of the details of the aid package and why some U.S. allies have been increasingly insistent on the need for more help, Nightly spoke with Lara Seligman, a POLITICO defense reporter who specializes in coverage of the Pentagon. This conversation has been edited. In each case, why was it so essential that the aid be approved now? What kind of difference will it make? For Ukraine, this aid could not come soon enough. The Pentagon has only been able to send one weapons package to Kyiv since December, which is when the administration ran out of funding to support the war effort. Top U.S. officials have recently told lawmakers that Russia is gaining momentum because Ukraine is running out of ammunition and air defenses. CIA Director Bill Burns said last week that without new U.S. weapons, Ukraine could lose by the end of the year. For Israel and Taiwan, the legislation provides funding for those countries to buy additional weapons from the U.S. that will help strengthen their militaries. What specifically is the foreign aid going towards within these three regions? On the Ukraine front, the bill provides $23.2 billion for the U.S. military to replenish stocks of weapons provided to Ukraine, $13.8 billion for the Pentagon to contract for new weapons for Kyiv, and $7.8 billion in additional weapons the U.S. can transfer from existing stocks to Ukraine. For Israel, the bill provides $4 billion to replenish Iron Dome and David Sling missile defense systems, as well as $1.2 billion to buy the Iron Beam system, and $3.5 billion to fund weapons purchases under the State Department’s foreign military financing program. The legislation also touts $2 billion for weapons purchases for Taiwan and other Pacific allies under the State Department’s foreign military financing program. Why was there so much domestic opposition to this tranche of aid in particular? In the fall, Republicans in Congress opposed sending aid to Ukraine and other countries without attaching strict border security requirements. This reflects the fact that many Americans are weary of the war and more concerned with problems at home. The Senate ultimately passed a version of the package, but House Speaker Mike Johnson refused to put it to a vote in the House. President Donald Trump has made clear his opposition to providing any aid for Ukraine, which made it difficult for Republicans in the House to support the legislation. Will another similar package likely be required as the situation develops? It’s likely Ukraine will require another supplemental by the end of the year, as it does not look like the war will be over anytime soon. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com . Or contact tonight’s author at cmchugh@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @calder_mchugh .
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| | THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.
Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY . | | | | | | | GETTING TESTY — Justice Juan Merchan is becoming exasperated by Trump attorney Todd Blanche after he argued before the judge that his client has not violated his gag order in the case. Merchan has repeatedly asked Blanche to point to specific comments or posts by Michael Cohen or Stormy Daniels to which Blanche claims Trump has responded in his own social media messages. Blanche has offered few examples. Prosecutors argued earlier that Trump’s social media post calling Cohen and Daniels “sleaze bags” was a part of the former president’s strategy to “condition” his followers. Meanwhile, Blanche argued today in the hearing on whether Trump has violated the gag order that the former president knows the parameters of the order — but said he’s merely engaging in political speech . “He’s allowed to respond to political attacks, Your Honor,” Blanche told Merchan. OUR FIRST WITNESS — Once the jury returned after the morning hearing on whether Trump had violated his gag order, the prosecution continued its questioning of David Pecker, the former CEO of National Enquirer’s publisher. Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass briefly questioned Pecker about his relationship with Michael Cohen , asking how he met Donald Trump’s former fixer and attorney. Pecker said he was introduced to Cohen at a bar mitzvah in the early 2000s and again later in Trump’s office in 2007. At that second meeting, according to Pecker, Trump told him that Cohen would be his personal attorney and all his communication should flow through him from then on. Pecker later detailed a key moment in what prosecutors have described as the beginning of Trump’s “conspiracy” to influence the 2016 election: an August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower in which Pecker, Trump and Michael Cohen allegedly hatched a “catch and kill” scheme to help Trump’s presidential campaign. At that meeting, Pecker said, he met with Trump and Cohen, while Trump aide Hope Hicks was “in and out” of the room. For 20 to 25 minutes, according to Pecker, the three men discussed how Pecker could help Trump become president . “And then I said ... I would be your eyes and ears,” Pecker said, explaining that he conveyed to Trump that “anything that I hear in the marketplace, if I hear anything negative about yourself or if I hear about women selling stories, I would notify Michael Cohen ... and then he would be able to get them killed in another magazine ... or somebody would have to purchase them.” He then explained his initial handling of claims by former Playboy model Karen McDougal that she had a yearlong romantic relationship with Trump. In June 2016, Pecker’s deputy Dylan Howard told him about McDougal’s claims, Pecker testified, and Pecker instructed Howard to go to Los Angeles to interview McDougal about her allegations. As soon as Pecker heard of McDougal’s story, he said, he contacted Michael Cohen, who became increasingly agitated about the situation. Prosecutors likely did not finish this line of questioning, and they plan to pick back up with Pecker when court is back in session on Thursday.
| | — Appeals court greenlights release of secret Trump battles to block aides from testifying: Details of prosecutors’ battles to obtain testimony from high-level White House aides to Donald Trump may soon become public , a federal appeals court ruled today in response to a POLITICO petition to access records related to the investigation of Trump’s bid to subvert the 2020 election. The unanimous ruling from a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals found that although those grand jury fights were properly kept secret at first, special counsel Jack Smith’s office confirmed the existence of the legal battles soon after charging Trump last year in the 2020 election probe. — $138.7M settlement over FBI’s botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations: The U.S. Justice Department announced a $138.7 million settlement today with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest. When combined with other settlements, $1 billion now has been set aside by various organizations to compensate hundreds of women who said Nassar assaulted them under the guise of treatment for sports injuries. Nassar worked at Michigan State University and also served as a team doctor at Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics. He’s now serving decades in prison for assaulting female athletes, including medal-winning Olympic gymnasts. — Conservative rebels seeking to oust Johnson unbowed after Trump’s words of support: Conservative rebels looking to oust Speaker Mike Johnson are continuing their threats despite former President Donald Trump’s words of support Monday . “It’s baffling hearing the establishment complain that it’s too much drama, too hard, and too risky to go through another Speaker race,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), the source of the current motion-to-vacate resolution, wrote in a social media post today. “Complete surrender is not acceptable and will not be tolerated.” Trump defended Johnson, noting his razor-thin one vote effective majority on any vote, during an interview with radio host John Fredericks on Monday.
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President Joe Biden speaks at Prince William Forest Park on Monday, April 22, 2024. | Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP | MOREHOUSE MAN — President Joe Biden is set to deliver two commencement addresses next month , providing him a prime platform to address young voters as tensions over Israel’s war in Gaza continue to roil college campuses. Biden will address graduates at Morehouse College, a historically Black college in Georgia, during the school’s May 19 ceremony. He’ll also speak at the commencement for the United States Military Academy at West Point on May 25, according to the White House. His speech at Morehouse will give Biden the chance to appeal directly to young, Black voters in a swing state that was crucial to his success in the 2020 election. TRUMP DEFENDS JOHNSON — Donald Trump defended embattled House Speaker Mike Johnson , declined to criticize House Republicans over their vote on Ukraine funding and railed against prosecutors trying him in a wide-ranging post-court interview on Monday. The former president, who had spent the day holed up in hostile territory in the Manhattan courtroom where he is being tried, took to conservative airwaves that evening in an effort to reset the conversation. TOP ISSUE — President Biden today strongly condemned a six-week abortion ban that will soon take effect in Florida , saying it would force women to endure “unbearable pain and cruelty” and blaming former President Donald Trump for their suffering. The New York Times reports the Biden campaign has made abortion a top issue, as polling shows it is one of the few subjects in which voters place more trust in Biden than Trump. Democrats have sought to tie Trump to laws like the one in Florida, labeling them “Trump abortion bans” and arguing that the former president would seek to curtail reproductive rights if he regains the White House. Throughout his brief remarks, Biden signaled his intention to make the election a referendum on Trump’s first term as much as his own.
| | DEFENSE SPENDING BOOST — The U.K. promised to pump an extra £75 billion ($93.4 billion) into its defense budget over the next six years in a move that will take its spending well above a crucial NATO target and pile pressure on European allies to follow suit. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said during a trip to Poland today that the new package is the “biggest strengthening of our national defense for a generation,” while his office argued it “sets a new standard for other major European NATO economies to follow.” The move will see the U.K. spend the equivalent of 2.5 percent of GDP per year on defense by the end of the decade — something which had previously been only a vague ambition for the country when resources allow. Speaking at a press conference alongside NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg this afternoon, Sunak said now was not “the moment for complacency.” “We can’t keep thinking America will pay any price or bear any burden if we are unwilling to make sacrifices for our own security,” he said. The commitment, which Sunak insisted would not require spending cuts or tax rises, would bring the U.K.’s annual defense spending to £87 billion ($108.3 billion) in 2030-31. It comes amid fierce transatlantic debate about defense spending in Europe. NATO countries are expected to spend 2 percent of their GDP on defense, with 18 members currently on track to do so. Germany hit that target for the first time this year.
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| | | ANALYZE THIS — What does it mean to be a writer? Or to sound like a human on a page? In school, everyone has probably read or considered writers who had the kind of creativity to push the art form forward. We’ve all also probably opened a book or an essay and thought this is derivative, or this is poor writing that feels more like a collection of other people’s thoughts than our own. These concepts are front of mind for human writers these days, as AI language models become more capable at reconstructing how we sound and how we write. The AI platform’s capability, which grabs and catalogs and iterates on humans’ writing from around the world, raises some essential questions about the very nature of human creativity . Do we have an ability to think in different ways than a machine, no matter how advanced it is? Or can creativity itself be built out of thin air? Samanth Subramanian considers these questions and more in an essay for The New Republic.
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On this date in 1971: A long line of U.S. Marines, members of the 3rd Marine Amphibious force, carry duffel bags aboard the U.S.S. Cleveland in Da Nang, South Vietnam. They were among the U.S. forces being pulled out of South Vietnam. | Dang Van Phuoc/AP | Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here . | |
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