President Joe Biden will convene the top four congressional leaders Tuesday as the White House ratchets up pressure on lawmakers to pass additional funding to Ukraine and ahead of a partial government shutdown deadline this week.
The meeting – which will include Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries – comes at a pivotal moment following Johnson’s resistance to Ukraine aid.
Biden, who visited Ukraine last year, has repeatedly framed the need to support the country against Russia as a matter of national security abroad and at home. In the face of congressional inaction on a package that includes $60 billion in aid to Ukraine, the president has directed his team to make the consequences “abundantly clear,” a US official told CNN.
At the core of that message are the stakes of ceding ground to Russia and the dire situation Ukraine faces without more funding. Military analysis, intelligence and information from Ukrainians have prompted concerns within the Biden administration about Russia’s aggression and what it means on the battlefield.
“The outlook is a lot more bleak,” the US official said.
On Sunday, national security adviser Jake Sullivan called out Johnson by name in his push for the GOP-controlled House to pass Ukraine aid.
“There is a strong bipartisan majority in the House standing ready to pass this bill if it comes to the floor, and that decision rests on the shoulders of one person, and history is watching whether Speaker Johnson will put that bill on the floor,” Sullivan told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
In private conversations, Biden has sought to reassure allies that he’s doing everything he can…
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