Almost One Dozen Republican Senators Vote Against Proceeding With $40Bln Ukraine Aid Bill

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Almost a dozen Republican US Senators voted against moving forward with a $40 billion Ukraine aid bill, citing concerns about nation building and the funding’s possible impact on the economy.

The Senate on Tuesday in a vote of 88-11 agreed to advance the legislation, entitled the Ukraine Supplemental Aid Package, towards a final vote. Those who voted no include Senators Josh Hawley, Rand Paul, and Marsha Blackburn.

"The $40 billion Ukraine bill represents a return to nation building. Wrong Choice. I’m a no," Hawley said via Twitter on Tuesday.

Hawley in an interview with Fox News also said that the legislation seems to be a part of an "unfocused globalism" instead of a nationalist foreign policy. There are concerns that the Ukraine funding could shortchange domestic priorities, including southern border security, Hawley said.

"The amounts we're talking about are astronomical... about three times as much as Europe has contributed combined, all of the European states, for a war that's happening on their continent," the senator said, adding that he was concerned about the US allowing allies to "freeload."

The concerns are shared by lawmakers including Senator Paul, who on Thursday delayed an attempt at swift passage of the legislation, trying to add provisions that would oversee the money being spent and weapons being sent.

Paul expressed concerns about the impact of sending such a large amount of funding amid preexisting concerns about inflation and the national debt.

The House of Representatives earlier in May passed the legislation in a vote of 368-57. The bill would provide Ukraine with over $20 billion in military aid, $8.5 billion in economic aid, and over $6 billion in humanitarian assistance.