Bad luck for Zelenskyy in D.C. On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy met with President Joe Biden, making his plea for greater U.S. support for the war effort against Vladimir Putin's Russian invasion. Though the White House had just announced a $325 million air-defense package for Ukraine, "the Biden administration has opted not to provide Ukraine with long-range missiles known as ATACMS that would allow Kyiv to strike well behind Russian lines," reports Axios.
Zelenskyy's plea for an additional $24 billion also does not look likely to materialize, as Rep. Chip Roy (R–Texas) and Sen. J.D. Vance (R–Ohio), along with six senators and 22 members of the House, used the occasion to voice their opposition to that high dollar amount of Ukraine aid. As Republicans in the House continue to oppose spending bill proposals, the U.S. government inches closer to shutting down, provided appropriations cannot be agreed to by the Sept. 30 deadline.
