The US Capitol building in Washington DC on 19 September 2025. Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Reuters
In a second break with Donald Trump in a week, the House passed legislation on Thursday that would provide aid to Ukraine and impose sanctions on key sectors of the Russian economy, overriding objections from Republican leaders who warned the bill could undermine negotiations for a stronger resolution.
The 226-195 vote signals growing impatience with Trump's approach to the war and represents the House's second major foreign policy defiance of the president this week. On Wednesday, the House approved a war powers resolution aimed at halting US military action against Iran for the first time.
The bill, sponsored by Democratic Representative Gregory Meeks, aims to solidify US support for Ukraine by providing over $1 billion in security and reconstruction assistance. It would also make an additional $8 billion available for Ukraine's defense through loans.
Supporters forced action on the Ukraine bill by gathering 218 signatures on a discharge petition, a legislative tool that allows a majority of the House to bypass leadership. Once rarely successful, discharge petitions have been used this Congress to pass bills on releasing government files on Jeffrey Epstein and extending healthcare subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, though the latter stalled in the Senate.
Meeks said the question before the House was straightforward: whether to help Ukraine negotiate from a position of strength or allow Russia to outlast American resolve. "We all want this war to end," Meeks said. "The question is how. Will we abandon Ukraine and force it into a terrible deal? That is what Vladimir Putin is counting on. Or will this body live up to the commitments we've made since the start of this war?"
The vast majority of Republicans opposed the measure. Representative Brian Mast, chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said he believed the bill was "a cudgel to fight against President Trump." He called the bill "unserious" and noted it was crafted roughly a year and a half ago.
However, Representative Don Bacon broke with most of his Republican colleagues to voice support. "Are we going to stand with good or are we going to stand with evil? That's what this is about tonight," he said.
Supporters hope the House's passage will pressure the Senate to act, but they acknowledge the Senate is unlikely to go along unless Trump endorses the bill. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, who signed the discharge petition and voted for the bill, said, "It's probably not going to get 60 votes in the Senate, but it's going to hopefully force the Senate to address the issue. It's going to send a great message to the soldiers of Ukraine." He added that the vote would also send a message to Putin that "we do have a pulse here, that we do care about Ukraine and that we are going to utilize our authority to help them."
As the war has dragged on, it has become increasingly difficult for Ukraine's supporters in Congress to secure additional financial aid. The US has approved approximately $195 billion for the Ukraine response, according to the latest quarterly inspector general report for Operation Atlantic Resolve, with roughly a quarter of that going to replenish US military weapons stockpiles. The last major legislation to bolster Ukraine's defense was passed in April 2024, though modest amounts have since been included in annual appropriations bills.
