After rejecting compromise, Speaker Johnson again demands border bill as condition for Ukraine aid

“While the passage of this funding package is cause for celebration, we cannot forget the calamitous path that led us to this moment,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin (D-MD), said in a statement. “The political entrenchment and partisan brinkmanship that characterized the debate over this legislation led to significant delays in delivering aid to our allies and a host of missed opportunities.”

But after rejecting the toughest border security bill in decades negotiated by Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) and backed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Johnson is citing Senate inaction on the border for his latest refusal to allow any vote on Ukraine aid.

“The Senate … should have gone back to the drawing board to amend the current bill to include real border security provisions that would actually help end the ongoing catastrophe. Instead, the Senate’s foreign aid bill is silent on the most pressing issue facing our country,” Johnson said in a statement issued last night. “Now, in the absence of having received any single border policy change from the Senate, the House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters.”

Even some of Ukraine’s most ardent supporters quickly fell in line with the strategy Trump hopes to ride to victory in the fall. “I have been saying for months that helping Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan are extremely important national security imperatives for the United States,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said in a statement. “However, as I have been consistently saying, we must deal with our border first. … Until that day comes, I will be voting no.”

JOHNSON REJECTS BORDERLESS UKRAINE BILL AHEAD OF SENATE PASSAGE: THE HOUSE WILL ‘WORK ITS OWN WILL’

TRUMP’S LATEST DEMAND: Trump continues to demonstrate his iron grip on the Republican Party by issuing edicts in his rallies and social media posts, which quickly become the nonnegotiable policies of his MAGA-wing backers in Congress.

At his “Get Out the Vote” rally in Conway, South Carolina, Saturday, Trump bragged about how he personally “crushed” what he called “crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous open borders bill.” He followed that with a new ukase, which he announced as “breaking news,” that henceforth all U.S. foreign aid should be in the form of loans.

“Give them the money, and if they can pay it back, they pay it back. If they can’t pay it back, they don’t have to pay it back because they’ve got some problems,” Trump said. “But if they go to another nation, they drop us like a dog, like a female drops a male after a date because he doesn’t like her, if that happens to our country, then very simply we call the loan. And we say, ‘We want our money.’” 

Graham was the first GOP senator to salute smartly and promote Trump’s scheme. “President Trump is right to insist that we think outside the box,” he said.

“The supplemental aid package should be a loan to the countries in question, as suggested by President Trump,” Graham said. “A loan on friendly terms allows America, who is deeply in debt, a chance to get our money back and changes the paradigm of how we help others.”

SENATE PASSES UKRAINE AID AFTER MARATHON TALKING FILIBUSTER BY CONSERVATIVES

ONE WAY OUT: Despite the delaying tactics employed by Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Mike Lee (R-UT), the Senate passed the $95 billion aid bill by a comfortable margin with 10 votes to spare. 

While Johnson can refuse to send the Senate bill to the House floor, where it would almost certainly also pass, there are ways around him. But it would take a few like-minded Republicans to defy the speaker. Former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican who describes himself as a “proud RINO” has suggested a handful of Republicans use the same tactic the House Freedom Caucus used to bring the House to a halt, until Johnson caves. 

But on social media last night, he also called for a more conventional legislative tactic, a “discharge petition” that would send the bill to the floor without Johnson’s imprimatur. “Time for a discharge petition, or for three Republicans to vote against every rule until he agrees,” Kinzinger posted. “You will not win unless you fight fire with fire.”

“Our leader, Hakeem Jeffries, said that he has not ruled out using a discharge petition, which is a parliamentary maneuver to try to bring a bill to the floor and also to just see where all of the Republicans are on this,” former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said last night on CNN. “We’ve had over 300 votes for assistance to Ukraine but strong bipartisan support for that in the Congress. So this isn’t a partisan issue in most respects.”

JD VANCE READS DR. SEUSS ON SENATE FLOOR AS PART OF EFFORT TO SLOW PASSAGE OF $95B FOREIGN AID BILL

Good Tuesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Stacey Dec. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre

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NOTE TO READERS: Daily on Defense will not publish Monday, Feb. 19, as we observe the federal Presidents Day holiday. We’ll be back in your inbox and online Tuesday, Feb. 20. 

NOT HAPPENING TODAY: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was scheduled to depart today for Brussels, Belgium, where he was to lead another meeting of the 50-plus nation donor group that has been coordinating military assistance to Ukraine.

Instead yesterday Austin found himself in the intensive care unit at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center being treated for bladder problems after last month’s surgery for prostate cancer.

In a statement yesterday, his doctors said a prolonged hospital stay is not anticipated and that he could be back at the Pentagon this morning: “Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III underwent non-surgical procedures under general anesthesia to address his bladder issue. We anticipate a successful recovery.”

“The current bladder issue is not expected to change his anticipated full recovery. His cancer prognosis remains excellent,” the doctors added.

PENTAGON QUICK TO NOTIFY PUBLIC OF LLOYD AUSTIN’S LATEST HOSPITALIZATION AFTER CANCER SECRECY

NATO TRIP CANCELED: The Pentagon announced yesterday that Austin’s travel plans, which included attendance at a NATO defense ministerial meeting Thursday, have been canceled and that he will likely participate remotely from Washington.

“Wednesday’s Ukraine Defense Contact Group will continue, albeit virtually,” Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters yesterday. “While Secretary Austin currently intends to participate in the virtual UDCG, he will remain flexible depending on his healthcare status.”

Dr. Celeste Wallander, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, who will be in Brussels this week, is prepared to represent the secretary as required,” Ryder said. Separately, U.S. Permanent Representative to NATO Ambassador Julie Smith will represent Austin at the NATO defense ministerial scheduled for Thursday. 

MUCH ADO ABOUT NATO: Former President Donald Trump’s weekend comments about how, during his time as president, he used dire threats to squeeze more money out of so-called delinquent allies are still reverberating around the globe. Trump faced particular pushback to his threat to encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” if NATO countries don’t “pay their bills.” 

“The promise of NATO — that an attack on one is an attack on all — keeps American families safe. It’s that simple,” President Joe Biden said in a social media post. “Any individual who calls into question the durability of that vow is a danger to our security.”

But some Republicans applaud Trump’s bare-knuckles approach to handling allies that aren’t pulling their weight. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) told ABC News he’s “100% behind him.” Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) said people shouldn’t “overreact” to Trump’s comments and that NATO allies need to “get over it.”

“Give me a break — I mean, it’s Trump,” Graham told the New York Times. “All I can say is while Trump was president, nobody invaded anybody. I think the point here is to, in his way, to get people to pay.”

“I have zero concern because he’s been president before. I know exactly what he has done and will do with the NATO alliance,” Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on CNN Sunday. “He’s telling a story. And frankly, look, Donald Trump is not a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He doesn’t talk like a traditional politician. And we have already been through this now. You would think people had figured it out by now.”

“What he’s basically saying is, if you see the comments, he said NATO was broke or busted until he took over because people weren’t paying their dues,” Rubio said. “And then he told the story about how he used leverage to get people to step up to the plate and become more active in NATO.”

“I would say to Marco, for whom I have an awful lot of respect, if you don’t think Trump is serious about getting out of NATO, then why did you recently co-sponsor legislation requiring approval by two-thirds of the House and the Senate before a president can withdraw from NATO?” former national security adviser John Bolton countered on CNN last night. “Is there some other president or would-be president out there that you think is going to withdraw other than Donald Trump?”

“He should have been sitting next to me at the NATO summit in 2018, when I was called up by Trump to his seat at the table and he said, ‘Well, should we do it?’ And I said, go up to the line, but don’t go over it,” Bolton recounted. “I went back to my seat with Mike Pompeo and Jim Mattis, who said, what’s he going to do? And I didn’t know. That’s how close it was.”

ALLIES FEAR ‘MURDERER’ PUTIN’S INTERPRETATION OF TRUMP’S NATO BARB

WHAT DID TRUMP SAY, EXACTLY? A lot has been made of Trump’s anecdote, and there have been questions raised about whether it’s been embellished in the retelling. But what is clear is that Trump was bragging about a threat he used as a negotiating tactic to pressure, some would say bully, NATO allies he saw as deadbeats.

For the record, here is the full story, as Trump told it Saturday in Conway, South Carolina, according to the transcript site Rev.com:

I got them to pay up. NATO was busted until I came along. I said, “Everybody’s going to pay.” They said, “Well, if we don’t pay, are you still going to protect us?” I said, “Absolutely not.” They couldn’t believe the answer. And you never saw more money pour in to Secretary-General Stoltenberg. I don’t know if he is anymore, but he was my biggest fan. He said, “All these presidents came in, they’d make a speech, they’d leave. And that was it.”

And they all owed money, and they wouldn’t pay it. I came in, I made a speech, and I said, “You got to pay out.” They asked me that question. One of the presidents of a big country stood up, said, “Well, sir, if we don’t pay and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?” I said, “You didn’t pay. You’re delinquent?” He said, “Yes, let’s say that happened.”

“No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills.” And the money came flowing in. And Henry would know this. If I said, “Yes, I will. You don’t have to pay. Yes, I will.” 

Most politicians have said to that, “Yes, we will protect you under any circumstances.” Well, then they’re never paying up. I said, “No, no. You have to understand you don’t pay your bills, you get no protection.” It’s very simple. Hundreds of billions of dollars came into NATO, and that’s why they have money today because of what I did. And then I hear that they like Obama better. They should like Obama better. You know why? Because he didn’t ask for anything. We were like the stupid country of the world, and we’re not going to be the stupid country of the world any longer. We’re not going to be.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

THE RUNDOWN: 

Washington Examiner: Senate passes Ukraine aid after marathon talking filibuster by conservatives

Washington Examiner: Johnson rejects borderless Ukraine bill ahead of Senate passage: The House will ‘work its own will’

Washington Examiner: Trump asks Supreme Court to weigh presidential immunity and delay trial

Washington Examiner: Allies fear ‘murderer’ Putin’s interpretation of Trump’s NATO barb

Washington Examiner: Editorial: NATO outrage at Trump is deserved — so is outrage at Europe’s fecklessness

Washington Examiner: Tucker Carlson says Moscow ‘nicer’ than any US city

Washington Examiner: Illegal immigration shifts away from Texas after Abbott locks down border: Data

Washington Examiner: Trump’s comments about Nikki Haley’s husband show why many voters are reluctant to support him

Washington Examiner: Biden administration supports Israel going into Rafah with ‘credible plan

Washington Examiner: Rand Paul drags out passage of $95 billion foreign aid bill, putting him at odds with Mitch McConnell

Washington Examiner: China ‘penetrating’ electrical grids, NATO ally spy agency warns

Washington Examiner: Pentagon quick to notify public of Lloyd Austin’s latest hospitalization after cancer secrecy

Washington Examiner: Dozens reportedly killed in Israeli hostage rescue mission

Washington Examiner: Opinion: A Palestinian Authority that rewards terrorism has no place in Gaza

Washington Post: Biden, King Issue Warning On Rafah

Reuters: France Proposes Hezbollah Withdrawal, Border Talks For Israel-Lebanon Truce

AP: Poland, France and Germany vow to make Europe stronger as fears grow over Russia and Trump

CNN: Russia Used An Advanced Hypersonic Missile For The First Time In Recent Strike, Ukraine Claims

AP: New NATO Member Finland Elects A President Set To Keep Up Hard Line On Neighboring Russia

Military Times: All The Houthi-U.S. Navy Incidents In The Middle East (That We Know Of)

BBC: The Fighter Pilots Hunting Houthi Drones Over The Red Sea

Yonhap: S. Korea Vows ‘Overwhelming Response’ If N. Korea Provokes

NBC News: Joint Chiefs Head Says U.S. ‘Credibility Is At Stake’ Following Trump’s NATO Remarks 

USNI News: U.K. Royal Navy Carrier HMS Prince Of Wales Gets Underway For Massive NATO Exercise

AP: How the ghostwriter of Biden’s memoirs ended up in the center of a classified documents probe

Defense One: Don’t Call It a Slush Fund: Pentagon’s Top Buyer Says Looser Pursestrings Will Foster Innovation

Inside Defense: F-35 Engine Upgrade Program to Run out of Money in June Without FY-24 budget

Breaking Defense: Despite Huge Industry Losses, Air Force ‘Not Getting Rid of Fixed-Price Contracts’: Hunter

Task & Purpose: With Austin Recuperating, Who Would Advise the President on a Nuclear Strike?

Air & Space Forces Magazine: New Commands, Ranks, and More: Big Changes for Air Force & Space Force

Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force Warrant Officer Program to Focus on IT, Cyber Career Fields

Air & Space Forces Magazine: Combat Wings: Air Force Chief Lays Out New Model for Packaging Forces

Defense News: The New B-52: How the Air Force Is Prepping to Fly Century-Old Bombers

Air & Space Forces Magazine: Saltzman Announces Fourth Space Force Field Command: Space Futures Command

Space News: Space Force Seen as the More Agile Branch to Adopt New Tech

Air & Space Forces Magazine: How Tension Between New Integrated Capabilities Command and Office May Benefit Air Force

Aviation Week: P&W XA103 NGAD Engine Moves to Detailed Design

THE CALENDAR: 

TUESDAY | FEBRUARY 13

10 a.m. Aurora, Colorado — Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium through Feb. 14: “Preparing for Great Power Conflict,” with Air Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman; Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin, Kristyn Jones, performing the duties of undersecretary of the Air Force; Andrew Hunter, assistant Air Force secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics; Frank Calvelli, assistant Air Force secretary for space acquisition and integration; Maj. Gen. Scott Cain, commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory; and Brig. Gen. Derek O’Malley, deputy director of operations at North American Aerospace Defense https://www.afa.org/afa-warfare-symposium

10 a.m. — Middle East Institute virtual discussion: “Negotiations to End the War in Gaza: Prospects, Challenges, and Next Steps,” with Sultan Barakat, professor of public policy at the Qatar Foundation’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University; Gershon Baskin, Middle East director at the International Communities Organization and former Israeli hostage negotiator; Hiba Husseini, managing partner at Husseini and Husseini LLC, chairwoman of the Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis and legal adviser to the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks; and Randa Slim, senior fellow and director of the MEI Conflict Resolution and Track II Dialogues Program https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register

11 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies Impossible State Live Podcast, virtual discussion: “Is North Korea Really Ready for War?” with Sung-han Kim, professor at Korea University, and Victor Cha, CSIS Korea chairman https://www.csis.org/events/impossible-state-live-podcast

12 p.m. — Association of the U.S. Army “Noon Report” webinar with retired Gen. Mark Milley, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Army chief of staff https://www.ausa.org/events/noon-report/gen-milley

1 p.m. — Canada Institute, Wilson Center, the U.S. Department of State virtual discussion: “Hostage Diplomacy as an International Security Threat: Strengthening our Collective Action, Deterrence and Response,” with Secretary of State Antony Blinken; Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly; Jon Alterman, CSIS senior vice president; and Merissa Khurma director, Wilson Center Middle East Program https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/hostage-diplomacy

1:30 p.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “The War in Ukraine Two Years On,” with Dara Massicot, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace senior fellow; Michael Kimmage, CSIS nonresident senior associate; Maria Snegovaya, CSIS senior fellow; and Max Bergmann, director of the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program https://www.csis.org/events/war-ukraine-two-years

7 p.m. — Atlantic Council virtual seminar: “The Risks of Simultaneous Conflicts in the Indo-Pacific,” with Markus Garlauskas, director of the Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative; Ryo Hinata-Yamaguchi, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative; Sungmin Cho, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative; and Lauren Gilbert, deputy director of the Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/the-risks-of-simultaneous-conflicts

WEDNESDAY | FEBRUARY 14

5 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg previews Thursday’s NATO defense ministerial at NATO Headquarters https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news

8:30 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion of a new report, “Building International Support for Taiwan,” with Ryan Hass, Brookings Institution chairman in China studies; Manoj Kewalramani, Takshashila Institution fellow in China studies; Janka Oertel, director of the European Council on Foreign Relations’s Asia Program; Jude Blanchette, CSIS chairman in China studies; and Lily McElwee, CSIS chairwoman in China studies https://www.csis.org/events/building-international-support-taiwan-report-launch

9:30 a.m. Aurora, Colorado — Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium: “Preparing for Great Power Conflict,” with Jade Baranski, CEO and co-founder of Mobilize; Brian Morrison, vice president and general manager of space, cyber, and intelligence systems at General Dynamics Mission Systems; Latisha Rourke, vice president of cyber intelligence and general manager at Lockheed Martin: and Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall https://www.afa.org/afa-warfare-symposium/

10 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies call-in press briefing: “Assessing the War in Ukraine,” with Seth Jones, senior vice president, director, CSIS International Security Program; Eliot Cohen, Arleigh A. Burke chairman in Strategy, CSIS; Max Bergmann, director, Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program and Stuart Center, CSIS; Maria Snegovaya, senior fellow, Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program, CSIS; ​​​​Romina Bandura, senior fellow, Project on Prosperity and Development, Project on U.S. Leadership in Development, CSIS. RSVP: Samuel Cestari [email protected]

11 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — Joint press conference by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. at conclusion of Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting https://www.defense.gov/News/Live-Events/

12 p.m. 1333 H St. NW — Center for American Progress Action Fund in-person and virtual discussion: “Select Committee Democrats: A Smart and Confident U.S.-China Policy,” with Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL); Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI); and Alan Yu, senior vice president at the National Security and International Policy at the CAP Action Fund https://www.americanprogressaction.org/events

THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 15

3 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — NATO defense ministers meet at NATO Headquarters, with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg scheduled to give a press conference https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news

10 a.m. 2218 Rayburn — House Armed Services Committee hearing: “Outpacing China: Expediting the Fielding of Innovation,” with testimony from William LaPlante, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment; Heidi Shyu, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering; and Doug Beck, director, Defense Innovation Unit https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings/outpacing-china

12 p.m. 1744 R St. NW — German Marshall Fund of the U.S. in-person and virtual discussion: “The Global Dimension of Ukraine’s Cyber Defense,” with U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Cyberspace and Digital Policy Nathaniel Fick; Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly; Margaret Brennan, CBS foreign affairs correspondent and moderator of Face the Nation; and Christopher Schroeder, vice chairman of the GMFUS Board of Trustees https://www.gmfus.org/event/global-dimension-ukraines-cyber-defense

1 p.m. 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace discussion: “Should Ukraine Have Kept Nuclear Weapons? Deconstructing the Decision to Disarm,” with Mariana Budjeryn, senior research associate at Harvard University’s Project on Managing the Atom and author of Inheriting the Bomb: The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of Ukraine https://carnegieendowment.org/2024/02/15/should-ukraine-have-kept-nuclear-weapons

2:30 p.m. — U.S. Institute of Peace and State Department virtual discussion: “The Indo-Pacific Strategy in Action: Commemorating the Second Anniversary,” with Mira Rapp-Hooper, special assistant to the president and senior director for East Asia and Oceana at the National Security Council; Donald Lu, assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affair; Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs; Ely Ratner, assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific Security affairs Ely Ratner; Lise Grande, USIP president and CEO; and Vikram Singh, USIP senior adviser for South Asia https://www.usip.org/events/indo-pacific-strategy

7 p.m. — New America and Arizona State University Future Security Initiative virtual discussion: “Swift Justice: A Taliban Courtroom in Session,” with Victor Blue, New America fellow, photojournalist, and writer focusing on the legacy of armed conflict https://www.newamerica.org/future-security/events

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 16

4 a.m. Munich, Germany — Munich Security Conference runs from Feb. 16 to Feb. 18 at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof in Munich https://securityconference.org/en/msc-2024

7:45 a.m. 11493 Sunset Hills Rd., Reston, Virginia — Government Executive Media Group Washington Technology discussion: “Inside the New National Defense Industrial Strategy,” with Danielle Miller, acting deputy assistant defense secretary for industrial base resilience, and Nick Wakeman, editor in chief of Washington Technology https://events.washingtontechnology.com/defense-industrial-strategy/

10 a.m. 2301 Constitution Ave. NW — U.S. Institute of Peace Institute of Current World Affairs, and American Purpose discussion: “Life After Putin: Potential Scenarios for a Post-Authoritarian Russia,” with Sergei Guriev, professor of economics at Sciences Po Paris University; Mikhail Zygar, founding editor in chief of Dozhd; Miriam Lanskoy, senior director for Russia and Eurasia at the National Endowment for Democracy; and Jorgan Andrews, former deputy assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement affairs and USIP fellow https://www.usip.org/events/life-after-putin

10 a.m. — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace virtual discussion: “U.S. Policy and the Israel-Hamas War,” with State Department Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues David Satterfield https://carnegieendowment.org/2024/02/16/u.s.-policy-and-israel-hamas-war12 p.m. 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies discussion: on “U.S.-Korea Relations,” with Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) https://sais.jhu.edu/campus-events