With Republicans souring on Washington’s blank check for Kiev, fewer respondents to a Pew poll now think it should give even more
Anti-war protesters demonstrate during an address by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, December 21, 2022 © AFP / Drew Angerer
A growing number of Americans believe that the US is sending too much aid to Ukraine, with more than a quarter now saying that the administration of President Joe Biden is being too generous, according to a new Pew Research poll. Some still believe that Washington should increase its military and economic aid, but their numbers have halved over the last year.
Published on Tuesday, the poll found that 26% of Americans now say that the US is giving too much aid, up from just 7% last March, while 20% of respondents said that the US should give more and 31% say the amount is “about right.”
The findings show a dramatic change since March of last year, when 42% told Pew that they felt the US wasn’t doing enough for Ukraine.
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In the months since that first poll, the US has substantially increased its assistance to Kiev, and has now allocated more than $110 billion in military and economic aid. Doled out in successive packages, Washington’s efforts to bankroll Ukraine’s military has seen anti-air systems, armored vehicles, and more than a million artillery shells delivered to the country, with Biden pledging to keep the arms flowing “for as long as it takes.”
The bulk of this aid has been funded by two mammoth spending bills passed by Congress: a $40 billion bill passed in May and a $1.7 trillion government spending bill in December that included another $47 billion for Ukraine. While Republican leadership supported these bills, a small number of GOP lawmakers close to former President Donald Trump condemned Biden and his Democrat colleagues for spending so much on a foreign conflict, arguing that the money would be better spent shoring up the American economy and tightening border security.
Republican voters are more likely to oppose aid to Ukraine, with 40% saying that the US is giving too much, and 17% calling for more. Only 15% of Democrats think Biden should reduce US aid, while 23% think the cash flow to Ukraine should increase.
