70% of Battleground Voters Oppose U.S. Borrowing for Ukraine
A Supermajority of swing state voters reject Biden’s interventionism
On this Memorial Day weekend dedicated to honoring the fallen heroes who gave their lives for the United States, our country should rededicate itself to a foreign policy of realism and restraint. Our history teaches that even seemingly arms-length military aid commitments often morph into all-out American warfighting for US troops and nation-building US taxpayers.
So, before any intervention of any kind, we citizens must demand clarity from the foreign policy establishment of Washington DC, a cabal that has failed us so miserably, and so often.
1. What is the compelling US national interest that justifies intervention, even if that involvement begins as only financial?
2. Outline the specific path to achieve those goals, using American involvement, and then also detail America’s exit strategy from the crisis.
3. Explain the source of the funding for intervention. Even if the above two points are sufficiently addressed, can we afford this venture? Beyond the human toll, does the financial cost make risk/reward sense for regular Americans who struggle to pay for the basics in today’s economy?
The present US escalation in Ukraine fails on all three of these points, and badly. Not surprisingly, two years into that Black Sea war, public sentiment turns harshly against the Biden-Davos-Brussels policy of escalation and massive borrowing by US taxpayers to fund a regional, ancient ethnic feud.
My laborers’ advocacy group, the League of American Workers, just polled the key battleground state of Georgia. In that military-heavy swing state, a huge supermajority of 70% said that the US should NOT borrow money to send to Ukraine.
Thwarting the will of the people of Georgia, the US Congress just passed Biden’s $95 Billion supplemental military and foreign aid package, most of which went to Kiev, and all of which was borrowed money. The debt will be repaid, of course, by US taxpayers and by future generations. This boondoggle passed because of a corrupt Washington Beltway political alliance between establishment Republicans and Joe Biden.
Regarding the military presence in Georgia, the Peach State ranks in the top five states in America for active-duty personnel, largely because of the base formerly known as Fort Benning. Georgia has also ranked in the top five states, per capita, for overseas military deployments since 9/11.
So, this politically pivotal state, with an outsized commitment to America’s military, firmly rejects the foolish Washington War Machine policy of escalating an ethnic struggle 6,000 miles away from America with money we must borrow at increasingly high interest rates. Those interest rates on our debt spike, of course, precisely because of Biden’s exorbitant borrowing and spending, for this overseas adventurism and other misbegotten radical priorities.
While it is difficult to even ascertain total US deficit-spending on Ukraine, the Council on Foreign Relations tabulates about $175 Billion in total American spending for Kiev. For context, that mountain of borrowed money is about five times the annual budget of the state of Georgia, which is $36 Billion.
Looking at the details of our poll, which used a sample universe split evenly between Trump and Biden 2020 voters, the crosstabs show the political awakening of ordinary citizens to this foreign policy and fiscal folly. For instance, even among Biden’s 2020 voters, only 33% think we should borrow money for Ukraine spending. Among undecided 2024 voters – who are the holy grail of politics in this election season – only 10% support borrowing for Ukraine aid.
Current US policy might serve well the interests of the Davos set of globalist interventionists. Biden’s policy clearly pleases the lobbyists of “Gucci Gulch” who always maneuver for more federal borrowing and spending. Those K Street influence merchants live largely immune from the inflation fallout they create for working-class citizens.
But even worse than the financial costs, this reckless escalation in the Black Sea brings America closer to a totally unnecessary open confrontation with Russia. Vague notions such as “defending the international rules-based order” are not worth massive US spending, and surely not worth a single American life. We can recognize that Putin is a dictator without concocting ridiculous DC think-tank fantasies that he is about to march Russian troops into Paris.
Regarding the decades-long record of failure from the foreign policy establishment of Washington, consider the assessment of Robert Gates, who served then-Vice President Joe Biden as Secretary of Defense. Gates said that Biden “has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.”
Well, Biden is indeed wrong. Again.
The voters of Georgia know it, too.
Time to re-elect President Donald Trump, who will negotiate an end to this Ukraine conflict, and get back to focusing on the Biden-created crises here at home, such as defending our own border…instead of some faraway land.
Steve Cortes is former senior advisor to President Donald Trump, former commentator for Fox News and CNN, and president of the League of American Workers.
Something seemed fishy about further Ukraine assistance when the United States Senate nixed an audit of money already spent ---almost as though some of it might be coming back to the senators who did the nixing. Wouldn't it be less dangerous to privately ask all the senators who argued against an audit how much they're personally getting back from 'defense of Ukraine' expenditures ....and... just give them that amount up front without prolonging the bloodshed along the Russian border? On another front, couldn't we negotiate a trade deal right now with China which (1) guaranteed the safety of pro American Taiwanese politicians & citizens and (2) kept our Taiwan purchases at present levels in exchange for facilitating a bloodless takeover? After that we might think about closing our own border and getting back to caring for our own citizens.