Getting spanked.....

Putin says Russia will bolster its air defenses in response to Ukrainian drone attacks

Hours before the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum opened Wednesday, a Ukrainian drone attack struck an oil terminal in the city and a nearby naval base.

By Associated Press

President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia will strengthen its air defenses to counter recent Ukrainian drone attacks, which have reached deep inside his country and cast a cloud over his showcase economic forum in his hometown of St. Petersburg.

Speaking in response to a question from The Associated Press during a meeting with heads of international news agencies, Putin acknowledged the damage from Ukrainian drone attacks.

“To our regret, some of them break through,” Putin said of the drone strikes. “Russia has an air defense system, we need to improve it, strengthen it, and we will do that.”

The wide-ranging media session came on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, his annual showcase for investment. Hours before the forum opened Wednesday, a Ukrainian drone attack set ablaze an oil terminal in the city and also hit a nearby naval base.

Putin also said Russia is open for a compromise on Ukraine in line with understandings reached at his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, adding that Ukraine needs to accept them to make a deal to end the conflict, now in its fifth year.

Zelenskyy proposes talks

Also on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed face-to-face negotiations in a public letter addressed directly to Putin. Zelenskyy acknowledged shifting U.S. priorities, saying it would be wrong to wait for the U.S. to return its attention to Ukraine while it is remains heavily focused on the Iran war.

In Washington, Trump said it “would be great” if Putin and Zelenskyy meet.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin hadn’t seen the letter yet and repeated his statement that Zelenskyy could come to Moscow if he wants talks. Putin said last month he doesn’t exclude a meeting in s third country, but only when there is a deal to sign.

Putin dismissed the idea that European Union countries could mediate Russia-Ukraine peace talks because “mediation assumes neutrality. Where is the neutrality here?”

Any potential third-party mediators needed to be trusted by both sides, Putin said.

“How can Russia trust people who have been harping about the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia for years?” he said.

Putin’s battlefield update

Commenting on Russia’s use of its Oreshnik intermediate range ballistic missile, Putin said it was fired at targets that allowed it to test its capability and precision before using it against objectives closer to residential areas.

“We hit the area where it was convenient to see the results,” he said. “It was important for making a decision on the future on the full-format use of the Oreshnik on designated targets, including those in populated areas.”

Putin emphasized his push for control of the entire Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, noting that Ukraine controls about 15% of its territory.

Putin declared that “patriotism and will of the Russian people” will ensure the achievement of goals that Moscow set in Ukraine.

“Russian troops are advancing along the entire line of contact,” he said.

Putin said he has accepted Trump’s compromise proposals from the Alaska summit, saying they could “serve as a basis of agreements between Russia and Ukraine and put an end to the conflict.”

Moscow wants a comprehensive settlement, not a temporary truce, he said.

“There is no need to suspend the hostilities to start negotiations,” he said. “Naturally, the Ukrainian side would like us to suspend the advances made by Russian troops. But it would be better to end the war by agreeing to the compromises that were discussed in Anchorage.”

Putin dismisses sabotage accusations

Asked about an AP investigation tracking 191 incidents across Europe, including sabotage, cyberattacks, attempted assassination and other activity that Western officials say are part of a Russian-masterminded campaign, Putin replied there was no detailed proof of Moscow’s involvement.

“What are the specific facts? What has been proven?” he said, adding that the accusations showed that Europe was not ready to talk to Russia as an equal partner.

“This only shows that certain political figures in the West are trying to carry out aggressive plans against the Russian Federation,” he said.

Asked whether Russia could contribute to a settlement of the war in Iran, Putin responded that Moscow’s proposal to take enriched uranium from Iran for storage remains on the table. He noted Russia did so as part of the 2015 deal between Iran and world powers, “and we are ready to do it now.”

His future as president

Putin, 73, who has held power in Russia for over a quarter-century, was asked if he planned to run for another term that would keep him in office until 2036, when he’ll be 83. He laughed and said he’s “not even thinking about it.”

“Only God knows if any of us will be healthy enough ... to survive until tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, much less solve the problems we face and achieve the goals we set for ourselves,” he said.

In 2020, Putin ordered amendments to the Russian Constitution that essentially reset his term limits, keeping him in power.

Drone attacks on St. Petersburg

Wednesday’s drone attack hit the nearby Kronstadt naval base and an oil terminal, sending a plume of black smoke above Russia’s second-largest city — an embarrassing blow to Putin’s efforts to cast the conflict as a distant event that doesn’t affect Russian daily life.

It also underscored Kyiv’s growing ability to hit deep inside Russia and showed the vulnerability of its cities. Scores of flights were delayed or diverted at St. Petersburg’s airport and authorities cut cellphone internet service to try to prevent drone attacks.

Putin had scaled down Russia’s annual Victory Day parade on May 9, fearing Ukrainian strikes. Days later, a massive drone attack on Moscow’s suburbs killed three and showed the capital’s vulnerability.

Peskov said Russia’s forces were carrying out “systematic” strikes on Kyiv. On Tuesday, Russia launched deadly attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

Russia’s version of Davos

Putin has used the St. Petersburg forum, likened to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to showcase his country’s economic advances and encourage foreign investment. While Western officials and business leaders have stayed away after Putin sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, Russia has sought guests from elsewhere to underline its declared goal of promoting a “multipolar world.”

Saudi Arabia sent a large delegation this year, and the presidents of Uzbekistan and Tanzania and vice president of China also are present. A U.S. official, Rodney Mims Cook Jr., head of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, is attending for the first time in years.

Russia’s economic outlook has clouded as the initial boost from military spending has fizzled. The government raised taxes and increased domestic borrowing to keep its budget deficit under control.

Asked at the media session if Russia’s economy was struggling because of the military action, Putin paraphrased Mark Twain that “rumors of my death are highly exaggerated.”

He said the economy was growing but admitted that inflation was a concern.

“We’ve deliberately taken steps to cool the economy,” Putin said of Russia’s Central Bank putting the country’s key interest rate at 14.5%, which he called “a difficult decision.”

“You can say we’ve cooled off, or you can say we haven’t done everything yet, but these are deliberate steps. We don’t want inflation — hyperinflation — to reach 60-80%, as it is some countries,” he said. “We’re fighting for the health of the Russian economy as a whole.”

Epstein Epstein Epstein Epstein Epstein Epstein......

Lawmakers urge DOJ to investigate 2 men tied to Jeffrey Epstein

It comes after the late convicted sex offender’s former assistant implicated the individuals.

Hailey Fuchs

Several House Republicans are now calling on the Justice Department to investigate two men tied to Jeffrey Epstein after being accused of sexual misconduct by Epstein’s former assistant, Sarah Kellen.

Kellen sat for a transcribed interview with the Oversight and Government Reform Committee last month as part of its Epstein probe, where she told lawmakers she was abused as part of the convicted sex offender’s criminal enterprise.

She also told the committee she had been abused by celebrity hair stylist Frédéric Fekkai, who she alleged introduced her to Epstein under the auspices that he was a Victoria’s Secret model scout, and Philip Levine, the former Miami Beach mayor.

“[T]he Committee requests that the DOJ use all available tools, including immunity for certain witnesses, to investigate the allegations against, and any other criminal conduct committed by, Philip Levine and Frédéric Fekkai,” wrote Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and several panel Republicans in a letter Thursday to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.

The DOJ did immediately return a request for comment about the letter. A press contact for Fekkai’s haircare company also did not immediately return a request for comment about the allegations.

A spokesperson for Levine in a statement denied Kellen’s account of their interaction: “Nearly a quarter century ago, our client had a brief intimate encounter with another consenting adult. Any allegation suggesting otherwise is not true.”

Levine previously told WLRN Public Media that he “met Epstein only a few times.”

In their letter, the House Republicans noted that Levine’s name appears hundreds of times in the so-called Epstein files released by the Justice Department, and Fekkai “routinely [provided] salon services to women at Mr. Epstein’s instruction.”

Lawmakers also noted that Kellen only spoke to authorities in the Southern District of New York around Epstein’s 2019 criminal case. She had not been contacted by law enforcement before then.

“As part of its investigation into the alleged mismanagement of the federal government’s handling of the Epstein and Maxwell matters, the Committee seeks to understand why Ms. Kellen was not interviewed or otherwise contacted during that period,” the House Republicans wrote.

In wake of arrests abroad for some individuals who associated with Epstein, pressure has been mounting on U.S. authorities to also pursue additional criminal accountability in the case. But lawmakers have struggled to build new evidence that could lead to other prosecutions. Only one person so far has been convicted as part of Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme: Ghislaine Maxwell, who is now serving 20 years in prison.

Dismissal of multiple uniformed military leaders

House panel demands more information on military firings

The move comes after the dismissal of multiple uniformed military leaders since President Donald Trump took office.

By Leo Shane III and Connor O'Brien

Pentagon officials would have five days to tell Congress why senior uniformed military leaders had been dismissed or fired under a provision adopted by a House panel Thursday.

The move comes after the sudden firing of multiple top officers under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s tenure that have stoked bipartisan concerns that the Pentagon is forcing out experienced officers with little to no explanation.

Most recently, the firing of the widely popular Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George stoked outrage from Republicans and Democrats alike.

But numerous top officers have been abruptly dismissed since President Donald Trump’s return to office — including former Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. C.Q. Brown and top officers in the Navy and Coast Guard, as well as the heads of U.S. Southern and Cyber Commands, among other top posts.

Committee action: The new requirement, included in the House Armed Services Committee’s draft of the annual National Defense Authorization Act, was introduced by Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) and would mandate a report “that describes the performance concerns, actions, or inactions of that officer that are cause for such removal, transfer, or relief of duty.’’

The committee approved the provision by a bipartisan voice vote without objections.

Look ahead: Committee members were expected to debate additional amendments to the policy bill throughout Thursday, including other measures from Democrats that needle Hegseth’s leadership.

The provision still faces a long path before becoming law. Both the full House and Senate will have to pass the language before it heads to the president for signature, a process that is expected to take until sometime this fall at the earliest.

Pentagon silence: But its inclusion among uncontroversial amendments to the sweeping authorization bill represents a rebuke of Hegseth’s personnel moves and the lack of information provided to Congress about the rationale for them.

During an appearance before the committee in April, Hegseth declined to give reasons for George’s departure “out of respect to these officers.” He added that “we don’t talk about the nature of that, and we all serve at the pleasure of the president.”

Uncertain path.... Should never be in this situation...

Blanche faces uncertain path through Senate

“Nothing’s a safe or sure bet these days,” warned Senate Majority Leader John Thune.

Jordain Carney

Senators voted to confirm Todd Blanche for deputy attorney general in early 2025, but there’s no guarantee they will now vote to install him as the nation’s chief law enforcement officer.

Blanche, now serving as acting attorney general, faces a potentially rocky path through the Senate, with multiple key Republicans not immediately committing to supporting President Donald Trump’s expected nominee to run the Department of Justice.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters Thursday it was “hard to say” if Blanche would have a difficult time getting confirmed to succeed Pam Bondi, who was ousted from the position back in April.

“Most of our members are pretty deferential to who the president wants in some of these key positions,” Thune said, but added, “This is an environment where nothing’s a safe or sure bet these days.”

Trump’s nominees can lose three Republican votes and still be confirmed by calling in Vice President JD Vance to break a tie.

But the bigger hurdle could be getting Blanche through the Senate Judiciary Committee, where opposition from one Republican is enough to bottle up a nomination unless the nominee can also get help from Democrats on the panel. It’s not likely Blanche would get that bipartisan support.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) is viewed as the critical vote for Blanche to win over on the Judiciary Committee. Tillis has vowed he won’t support Justice Department nominees who he views as sympathetic those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and previously told POLITICO that the Justice Department’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund” would be a factor in whether or not an attorney general nominee is able to be confirmed.

Blanche told House appropriators Tuesday that the Trump administration would not go forward with administering payouts to individuals deemed victims of “lawfare” by the federal government. But the attempt to establish such an account has continued to present a political problem for Republicans, with many seeing Blanche as the face of the effort.

“What we need to do right now is focus on the [Anti-Weaponization] Fund, or he’s not going to have a very good time in Judiciary Committee,” Tillis, who will retire after the end of this year, told reporters when asked about Blanche’s forthcoming nomination. “Just think about what the Democrats would do to him.”

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, another Senate Judiciary Republican, said of Blanche’s chances, “I think it depends on his answers to questions that I intend to ask him at the Judiciary Committee.”

“The attorney general is not the president’s private lawyer, so it’s sort of by its nature, it’s a really hard job to do, but I want to make sure he understands the difference and is committed to making sure that the law is enforced,” Cornyn said.

Cornyn, like Tillis, has little left to lose by breaking with the president: He won’t be standing for reelection this fall after losing his primary late last month.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), who also sits on the Senate Judiciary, said “I really don’t know” when asked if he thought Blanche could get through committee or be confirmed by the full Senate, adding, “I’m keeping an open mind.”

Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) was bullish on Blanche’s prospects, “based on the proposition that every Republican on the committee voted for him less than a year ago, and based on the proposition that every … Republican Senator voted for him a year ago.”

$41,000,000,000,000 debt

US to reach $41T debt ceiling as soon as late winter, forecasters predict

The Treasury Department could prevent a U.S. debt default for several months after that.

Jennifer Scholtes

The U.S. government is on track to reach its $41.1 trillion debt limit next year — likely between late winter and mid-summer, a trusted independent forecaster predicted Thursday.

The new projection comes from the Bipartisan Policy Center, which used the latest data on U.S. cash flow to predict when the nation will again risk defaulting on its billions of dollars in loans, after Republicans acted last summer to raise the limit by $5 trillion through their One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Now the next Congress and President Donald Trump will need to enact a new law to further raise or waive the borrowing cap, in order to stave off an unprecedented U.S. debt default many economists predict would depress the global economy.

Once the debt limit is reached, the Treasury Department begins what it calls “extraordinary measures” to tap cash reserves and use accounting maneuvers that keep the U.S. from breaching the ceiling. Those cash conservation tactics are likely to buy another six to nine months, the nonpartisan think tank predicts.

Voting to allow the federal government to rack up more red ink comes with growing political risk for U.S. elected officials as the country’s debt eclipses its gross domestic product and voters increasingly voice concern about the U.S. deficit.

Congress’ nonpartisan scorekeeper predicted earlier this year that federal debt held by the public will rise from more than 100 percent of GDP this year to 120 percent in a decade, far exceeding the previous high of 106 percent of GDP in 1946. At the same time, new polling shows that more U.S. adults now view the deficit as a bigger problem than they did a year ago, as the United States is on track to spend $2 trillion more than it takes in during the current fiscal year.

GOP defeats initial attempts to save your money from orange fuck-face

Senate GOP defeats initial attempts to kill DOJ payout fund

Multiple attempts to restrict or nix the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” fell short during a marathon voting session.

By Katherine Tully-McManus and Jordain Carney

Senate Republicans beat back early attempts to quash the Justice Department’s controversial “Anti-Weaponization Fund” and potentially endanger the GOP’s immigration enforcement bill.

Senators voted 50-49 Thursday to reject an attempt by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that would have sent the measure back to the Judiciary Committee to insert language that would nix President Donald Trump’s $1.8 billion payout vehicle. The move was aimed at codifying the promise acting Attorney General Todd Blanche made to House appropriators Tuesday that the administration would scrap plans for the fund.

“Democrats will force Republicans to vote on Trump’s MAGA slush fund, his lifetime tax exemption, his billion-dollar taxpayer funded ballroom,” Schumer said from the Senate floor, referring also to an IRS settlement ruling out future Trump audits and the White House project to replace the razed East Wing.

Three GOP senators — Susan Collins of Maine, Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Jon Husted of Ohio — voted for Schumer’s motion. All are seeking reelection this year.

Democrats and most Republicans rejected an effort by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) to redirect the anti-weaponization funding toward “fraud enforcement” at DOJ.

“If Blanche says that this is largely inoperative, why not use this moment to codify that? Otherwise, you’re exposing every one of our members who are in cycle to having to deal with this between today and Election Day, and that makes no sense,” Tillis said shortly before the vote.

Democrats argued that Tillis’ proposal would just shift the money from one politicized purpose to another, and most Republicans chose to simply maintain the status quo.

But 11 GOP senators — Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, John Cornyn of Texas, John Curtis of Utah, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Jon Husted of Ohio, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Jerry Moran of Kansas, Mike Rounds of South Dakota, Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Todd Young of Indiana — joined with Tillis.

Democratic Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota also voted to advance the amendment.

The two efforts were the first of what is expected to be many attempts from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle at inserting language into the measure about the fund during the so-called “vote-a-rama.”

Unlike other expected attempts, Schumer’s motion could have been approved with a simple majority vote. Republicans held the vote on Schumer’s motion open for more than two hours as leaders worked through concerns from several GOP holdouts who have wanted to curtail the fund.

Tillis’ and other fund-related amendments are likely to be at a higher 60-vote threshold.

The fund has created a lingering headache for GOP leaders. Asked if he expected Tillis’ amendment would fail, Thune told reporters that he’s “not confident of anything right now.”

“I think we’ll have a vote or two around that issue — I can’t predict how it comes out,” he added. “People are going to have the option to vote for it.”

Adding language to the bill affecting the DOJ payout fund could divide Republicans and threaten the underlying immigration enforcement bill’s chances of clearing the Senate.

“There is nothing in the bill on this,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said about the DOJ fund. “I think we should try to move forward.”

Last chance????

Trump boosts Senate’s new college sports proposal: ‘Last chance to save College Sports’

The bipartisan effort came after the SCORE Act fell apart in the House.

Gregory Svirnovskiy

President Donald Trump threw his support behind the Protect College Sports Act, a new Senate bill that would create a federal rulebook for collegiate sports, urging lawmakers to come together on a bipartisan law for his signature this summer in a social media post Thursday.

“This Law resolves many of the most urgent issues challenging our Universities and Student-Athletes, stops the chaos and, most importantly, it may be the last chance to save College Sports, and Colleges themselves, before it’s too late,” he wrote on Truth Social.

The bill, a brainchild of Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and ranking member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), would enact limits on transferring for student-athletes, ban coaches from moving schools mid-season and enshrine certain “name, image and likeness” protections.

The boost to the Senate effort came after House lawmakers’ high-profile attempt to regulate college sports, the SCORE Act, fell apart.

Congressional Black Caucus members — who were crucial for getting it out of the lower chamber — abandoned the bill, furious at predominantly Southern, collegiate-sports heavy states that were moving to eliminate majority-Black congressional and legislative seats.

One difference between the two bills is a provision in the SCORE Act barring college athletes from ever attaining employee status.

The Southeastern Conference and Big Ten, college sports’ two largest and wealthiest conferences, announced their opposition to the Senate bill Tuesday, writing that it doesn’t “meaningfully preempt the patchwork of state laws or provide the protections needed to make and enforce consistent rules.” Both supported the House’s SCORE Act.

Trump thanked Speaker Mike Johnson and House GOP Leader Steve Scalise “for their work to fix this very major problem,” but he urged “the House and Senate to come together to pass a final Bipartisan Law.”

Cruz and Cantwell promoted their bill in a commerce committee hearing featuring Nick Saban, the famed former University of Alabama football coach, on Wednesday.

“The House of Representatives tried multiple times to pass a bill. Unfortunately, it failed,” Cruz said at the hearing. “The Protect College Sports Act is the only bipartisan bill. It is the last best hope we have to save college for us.”

On Thursday, Trump agreed, writing that the path to saving college sports from a “ROAD THROUGH HELL” lies in Congress.

“University Presidents, Conference Commissioners, Student-Athletes, Coaches, and Athletic Directors all complained to me that it has become a disaster, after years of no action, and that Schools were losing Hundreds of Millions of Dollars a year,” he said. “They compared it to a freight train that can’t be stopped!”

Making death threats

Oklahoma man charged with making death threats against John Thune

The indictment does not allege a particular motive for the threats beyond describing them as retaliation “on account of the performance of [Thune’s] official duties.”

Josh Gerstein

An Oklahoma man is facing nine felony charges for making death threats against Senate Majority Leader John Thune and members of his family.

David Shuck, 63, appeared in federal court in Tulsa on Thursday after a grand jury there returned an indictment charging him with making threats against Thune and his family by phone on three separate occasions in March, court records show.

Prosecutors did not seek pretrial detention for Shuck. U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Steele ordered Shuck released on a $10,000 bond.

A spokesperson for Thune’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A court-appointed defense attorney for Shuck declined to comment.

The indictment does not allege a particular motive for the threats beyond describing them as retaliation “on account of the performance of [Thune’s] official duties.”

However, a Justice Department press release described the case as part of an initiative related to an order President Donald Trump signed last September, known as NSPM-7, targeting “domestic terrorism and organized political violence.” Trump’s order focuses on the threat posed by Antifa, a broad umbrella term for far-left-leaning militant groups that resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists that the order describes as individuals endorsing “violence to achieve policy outcomes.”

Critics have warned that NSPM-7 encourages law enforcement to target Trump administration opponents engaged in lawful protest and paints Antifa as an organized entity when it is a vague label applied to a wide range of dissenting groups and people.

Court records show that Shuck pleaded guilty in 2012 in the same federal court to charges related to operating a large-scale marijuana growing facility. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Ukraine aid package

Ukraine aid package passes House, bucking GOP leaders and Trump

Eighteen Republicans broke ranks to help pass the military assistance and Russia sanctions.

Connor O'Brien

A new tranche of military assistance for Ukraine and sanctions on Russia passed the House on Thursday, delivering a fresh bipartisan blow to President Donald Trump’s foreign policy from Capitol Hill.

The measure passed despite Republican leadership’s resistance, with 18 GOP lawmakers supporting Democrats in a 226-195 vote.

It’s a strong show of support for Kyiv and the first time a standalone aid package has passed either chamber during Trump’s second term. Some Republicans have resisted allocating funding for Ukraine, especially since the president has opposed major aid packages and pushed for talks to end a war that has dragged into its fifth year.

The bill — which would provide $1.3 billion in security assistance for Kyiv and expand the suite of sanctions against Moscow — is the latest rebuke of the Trump administration’s national security policy, fueled partly by members of the president’s own party.

The House on Wednesday voted to halt the Iran war with four GOP members supporting the effort, the first time House Republicans have failed to hold the line on Trump’s authority over the military conflict. And the House Armed Services Committee is expected to advance defense legislation Thursday that limits reductions of U.S. troops in Europe.

A bipartisan coalition of 218 lawmakers forced a vote on the legislation — authored by House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Gregory Meeks — through a discharge petition begun by the New York Democrat nearly a year ago. The maneuver allows a majority of the House to advance bills that haven’t reached the floor through normal channels. Its success meant Speaker Mike Johnson could no longer block a long sought measure on Ukraine aid or Russia sanctions.

Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, a Republican who broke with the party to force the vote, urged his Republicans to “stand on the right side” of history. “This is our Churchill moment or our Chamberlain moment, and by God I’m going to choose Churchill,” Bacon said ahead of the vote on the House floor.

The effort has become a flashpoint in the GOP conference, with Johnson urging members to oppose the legislation in a closed-door party meeting this week. The vote was “not a reflection of Congress’ support for Ukraine,” Johnson said after the vote, calling the bill “poorly drafted.”

Numerous Republican defense hawks who support Ukraine opposed the Democratic-led bill, though, as they sought to avoid a political black eye for Republican leaders and Trump. But GOP support grew on Wednesday from the mere half dozen lawmakers who helped Democrats advance the bill.

Rep. Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.), one of the Republicans who supported the final bill, said the legislation’s “core objectives ... were in America’s interests.”

“We need to stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression,” Hurd said. “Putin is a dictator. What they’re doing is wrong.”

Independent Kevin Kiley of California also supported the measure. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) was the only Democrat to oppose it.

Republicans and Democrats have, in recent months, dinged the Trump administration for not seeking funding to help arm Ukraine and for not quickly spending money lawmakers allocated this year on security assistance for Kyiv or Baltic allies.

But the measure faces long odds of making it to Trump’s desk. The Senate has sidestepped efforts to vote on its own package of Russia sanctions, despite more than 80 senators signing on as cosponsors.

Not to hike tariffs

Anti-Trump trade alliance eyes pledge not to hike tariffs

An Asia-Pacific trade bloc is discussing a commitment with the European Union to avoid protectionist duties.

By Graham Lanktree and Caroline Hug

The European Union and a 12-nation Asia-Pacific trade bloc are drafting commitments not to raise tariffs on one another as Donald Trump continues to impose duties around the world, New Zealand’s trade minister told POLITICO.

“One of the things we are talking about is no escalation,” trade and investment minister Todd McClay said in an interview. “That’s more around tariff rates, that neither side will escalate tariffs against each other, in the way the U.S. has been against many of us.”

Amid the onslaught of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs last year, the EU and middle powers in the CPTPP bloc — which includes Australia, Britain, Canada, Japan, Vietnam and Malaysia — resolved to resist trade-war coercion by joining forces last November.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s landmark Davos speech in January planted the flag of the new coalition, which represents nearly a third of the global economy. The alliance then took its first steps on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization meeting in Cameroon in March by launching talks on a digital agreement.

The nascent digital pact between the EU and members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will “look at common areas and where rules can be similar,” said McClay. 

“We think we have enough in common to start shaping that amongst ourselves,” he added, pointing to mutual trade rules like banning countries from imposing tariffs on digital downloads, streaming content and software.

Both blocs, which represent nearly 40 nations on opposite sides of the globe, are also exploring a set of non-binding commitments, where members would pledge to honor trading rules, avoid introducing new barriers, and refrain from escalating tariffs where possible, McClay said.

While an agreement “doesn’t take the ability away” for nations to put up tariffs, he said, “it’s a commitment that you would make amongst the CPTPP with the European Union.”

Talks between the blocs come as the Trump administration moves to reimpose a 10 percent tariff on top trading partners including the European Union, Britain and Canada, while hitting others with a higher rate, citing concerns about forced labor.

After the World Trade Organization failed to secure agreement on reforms to the global trading system in March, the EU and CPTPP vowed to forge a new path to save rules-based trade. 

“World economies face a number of challenges at the moment. Most significant comes from uncertainty. If there are rules in place, those will be honored,” McClay said. “We take commitments elsewhere bilaterally that are harder to reach agreement in the WTO, and then those rules would generally start to find their way into the WTO rulebook.”

Singapore’s Trade Minister Grace Fu was also in London this week alongside New Zealand’s McClay for meetings with British Trade Secretary Peter Kyle about the bloc and its future.

“We have opportunities to talk and advance this in the bilateral meetings, as opposed to sitting there formally,” McClay said, noting that a majority of CPTPP members and EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič will also be in Paris this week for a meeting of the OECD.

Vietnam is chairing CPTPP this year and the next formal ministerial meeting with the EU is scheduled there later this year. “What you’ll see when we next meet at ministerial level with the European Union [is] a clearer definition of some of the things we would like to achieve,” McClay said.

“I think we will see a clear desire … for more than just talk,” he said.