US Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY), a veteran voice in Republican foreign policy, has seized on the government shutdown crisis – now in its fourth day – to demand that Congress pass a serious, full-year defense appropriations bill, arguing that failure to unlock a sweeping “Trump buildup” of the military would undermine deterrence against global adversaries and jeopardize sustained support for Ukraine.
Speaking from the Senate floor on Friday, McConnell, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, delivered a sharp critique of the ongoing funding deadlock – which he squarely blamed on Democrats – warning that repeated stopgap funding measures were “devastating to US military readiness”.
Prioritizing the war in Ukraine, McConnell stressed that continued security cooperation was being monitored closely by US rivals. He directly challenged officials within the administration he suggested were seeking to curtail assistance to Kyiv.
Torrential rain swept across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, flooding hundreds of tents sheltering families displaced...
On Monday, Paramount Skydance launched a $108bn takeover bid for Warner Bros Discovery, the entertainment giant...
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday hinted at a referendum for Ukrainians to decide whether to cede...
In Melekino, near Russian-occupied Mariupol, Russian soldiers who refuse to fight (refusniks) have reportedly been held...
