As Biden and Zelensky push for Ukraine aid, deal with GOP still appears far off

By Victor Reklaitis

McConnell says it's 'practically impossible' to craft and pass an agreement before Christmas, though that 'doesn't mean it's not important'

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday pushed a divided Congress to make a deal on more aid for the Eastern European nation, but analysts and some lawmakers forecast that weeks more of talks look likely.

Biden and his fellow Democrats, along with Zelensky, want congressional approval for additional Ukraine assistance before U.S. lawmakers take a break for the holidays, but Republicans won't sign off until they get support for their demands related to U.S. border security, such as stricter rules for asylum.

Republicans "cannot go back to our constituents, with close to 10 million illegal entries in the last three years, and say that we got nothing out of border negotiations," said GOP Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio on Tuesday during the WSJ CEO Council Summit, an event in Washington, D.C. Vance added that he sees potential for a deal "if the president is actually willing to make one."

Biden, for his part, said he's "ready and offering compromise already," but the president criticized what he described as an "extreme Republican partisan agenda on the border."

"Ukraine will emerge from this war, proud, free and firmly rooted in the West. Unless we walk away" the president said during a joint news conference with Zelensky following their meeting in the Oval Office. Their events together come as the Republican-run House and Democratic-controlled Senate are slated to go on recess after this week.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters on Tuesday that it's "practically impossible," even if Congress reaches an agreement, to "craft it, get it through the Senate, get it through the House before Christmas," though that "doesn't mean it's not important." The Kentucky Republican noted that House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, has "said to a number of people they're leaving at the end of the week."

Some analysts have been eyeing January as the time when a deal could be made.

"We continue to believe there is a deal to be had here, but our sense is that the debate will slip into the new year as there is no clear legislative forcing mechanism and the path of least resistance is leaving town for the holidays," said Isaac Boltansky, a BTIG analyst, in a note.

Meanwhile, another analyst, Pangaea Policy founder Terry Haines, has said in a note that an aid-and-border package can be finished by year's end, but he's cut his chances for it to 60%, down from 70% last week. He also said there are "three more weeks, until the end of the calendar year, to do this, not the one week the Washington conventional wisdom bandies about."

Biden is seeking $61 billion for Ukraine as the country continues to resist Russia's invasion, and the request is part of a $110 billion package that also includes money for Israel.

"It's very important that by the end of this year, we can send a very strong signal of our unity to the aggressor," Zelensky said during the joint news conference.

-Victor Reklaitis

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12-12-23 1735ET

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