Ukraine is the Scrimmage Line for Liberty

Floor Speech

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Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, we are rapidly approaching the 2-year anniversary of Putin's illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine.

The American people have responded with extraordinary support for Ukraine. Millions of Americans have donated their time and money to charitable organizations helping the Ukrainian people. Some have even volunteered to fight alongside the Ukrainian defense forces.

Congress has responded by providing over $50 billion in security assistance and billions more in humanitarian assistance. These are unprecedented numbers, and it requires unprecedented oversight by Congress.

I am here to tell my colleagues, who are concerned about where the money is going, that we are doing that oversight. The Armed Services Committee has conducted vigorous oversight of U.S. military assistance to Ukraine.

Every month since the war, the committee has held a classified briefing with DOD officials over Ukrainian aid. This morning, I was a member of a briefing that was the 12th in that series. We have also had multiple visits to sites in Europe where the aid is being staged to go into Ukraine. We have held open hearings on the topic where we have heard from the DOD Inspector General.

In the next couple days, the House will take up the conference report on the FY24 NDAA. That bill creates a special inspector general for Ukraine, dedicates $8 million to swiftly set up the office, and provides direct hiring authority to quickly staff it.

We will continue to stay on top of this, but I want to assure my colleagues that there has been no evidence of diversion of weapons provided to Ukraine or any other assistance.

What most folks don't realize is that the money DOD is spending on Ukraine is actually going toward creating high-skilled, good-paying jobs right here at home. The DOD so far has spent $45 billion on Ukraine-related security assistance. All of that money has been spent in the U.S. by U.S. companies, supporting thousands of highly skilled American jobs.

These include jobs in Arizona to build Stingers and Javelins; jobs in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Iowa, and Missouri to build ammunition; and jobs in Texas, Florida, and Alabama to build Patriot missiles. It also includes over $3 billion to expand floor space, open new lines, and hire additional workers at weapons factories in Tennessee, Florida, Virginia, Missouri, and West Virginia. This investment in retooling and revitalizing our industrial defense base is helping us get ready for potential conflict with China. That is incredibly important.

Equally important to deterring China is standing by our commitment to Ukraine. Walking away sends the wrong signals to President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party. Let's not do that. Let's quickly come to a compromise that secures our border and keeps our commitment to Ukraine.

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