President Joe Biden began his presidential campaign by promising to eliminate $20,000 in student loans for borrowers in the country. He’s ending his term by seeking to cancel billions of dollars in Ukraine’s debt from its war with Russia. After years of record-breaking inflation, caused partly by reckless government spending and implementing policies that added trillions of dollars to the national debt, Biden’s attempt to forgive billions of dollars in loans to Ukraine is just the latest disastrous fiscal decision by the president.
Something is afoot in the Biden administration regarding Ukraine. This goes beyond trying to help a country fend off a ruthless aggressor. We’ve now progressed to jeopardizing the nation’s economic sustainability. With trillions of dollars in debt, we cannot afford to forgive Ukraine’s billions of dollars in debt. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) emphasized this Wednesday by forcing the Senate to vote on his joint resolution “to stop the Biden administration from making Ukraine’s debt the responsibility of the American people.”
“Americans all across the United States are grappling with high prices and their own debt thanks to four years of the Biden-Harris Administration, all while the U.S. national debt has hit a record $36 trillion, and we cannot afford a $4.65 billion dollar gift to Ukraine,” Paul said in a press release.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, most logical people understood that it was wrong. Initially, and perhaps begrudgingly, people understood why the U.S. offered to provide aid through loans and weapons for Ukraine’s defense. After all, Russia was the aggressor, and invading a sovereign nation was morally, ethically, and geopolitically wrong. However, at some point in the Russia-Ukraine war (two countries with a centuries-long history of conflict and warfare), Democrats made Ukraine’s protection the financial responsibility of the U.S. taxpayer.
As tragic as the situation in Ukraine is, it is not U.S. taxpayers’ responsibility to fund its sovereignty. This is especially true given the nation’s debt. Paul knows this, which is why he called for a vote on his resolution. He also knows that any senator who doesn’t support this resolution is essentially authorizing Ukraine to receive a U.S. taxpayer grant for billions of dollars — funds that could be used to help people in this country.
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“Senators who vote against my resolution today will be sending a message to all Americans that they clearly prioritize Ukraine over the people they represent and are for putting America last,” Paul said.
Paul is correct on this and should be commended for this initiative. As mentioned above, no logical person wants to see Ukraine invaded by Russia or the millions of innocent Ukrainians being affected by the war. Unquestionably, this is immoral Russian aggression. However, it is also wrong to keep asking U.S. taxpayers to fund Ukraine’s defense. As Paul pointed out, given that our country is trillions of dollars in debt, it is also something that we can no longer afford to do.
This article was originally published at www.washingtonexaminer.com
