
Ahmed Adel, Cairo-based geopolitics and political economy researcher
Experts at the Washington-based think tank The Heritage Foundation has criticised Washington’s aid to Kiev as opaque and a constant burden on US taxpayers. US taxpayers are paying several hundred dollars each for President Joe Biden’s persistent requests to Congress to increase military aid to Ukraine – and at a time when citizens are struggling.
Richard Stern, a budget expert at the Heritage Foundation think tank, was quoted by The Daily Signal as estimating that aid reached “a staggering $113 billion—roughly $900 per American household and almost 12 times the spending cuts promised by House leadership in the annual spending bills.”
“As with all new federal spending,” Stern added, “this $113 billion spending spree was added to our national debt and will cost more than $300 in interest costs per household over the decade. Of course, we’ve given more aid than that, but haven’t paid the bill on it yet.”
Kevin Roberts, president of the think tank, also notes that as the Ukrainian conflict “becomes a prolonged conflict, Americans are rightly growing sceptical of sending more taxpayer dollars and equipment from our depleted armoury.”
According to Roberts, US officials should have addressed citizen concerns, ensured basic oversight of aid provided to Kiev, and explained Washington's strategy in the conflict.
“If Congress can’t fix those fundamental issues, they have no business sending more money into the fog of war,” he added.
Ryan Walker, the acting executive director of Heritage Action for America, the think tank’s grassroots arm, noted to The Daily Signal: “Inflation remains high, families are struggling to make ends meet, and the credit rating for the United States was just downgraded.
“Still, the Biden administration is demanding that American taxpayers spend billions more of their hard-earned money to blindly fund another international conflict without any clearly defined US strategy, timeline, or oversight of aid,” he added.
A US opinion poll published on August 4 found that most Republican and independent voters oppose increased military aid to Kiev. The CNN poll found that 55% of Americans are against Congress authorising more funds for Ukraine, while 45% believe it should allow such funding. In addition, 51% say Washington has done enough to help Kiev, and 48% disagree. According to a poll conducted in the early days of Russia’s special military operation, the latter number represents a 14% drop from respondents who thought the US should have done more.
Biden’s poll rating is expected to take further hits as the economy struggles and is projected to continue struggling. Wells Fargo Investment Institute warned that the US economy would “struggle to avoid” a recession in early 2024. The institute cut the 2024 GDP growth forecast to 0.7% from 1.5% initially projected.
“Parts of the economy already are in recession, and the spending and employment trends are weaker. Ultimately, we believe the economy will struggle to avoid a recession,” the Global investment strategy team at the institute said.
Biden may have called his policies “Bidenomics” during his visit to Philadelphia on July 20, 2023, claiming that “we strengthen the middle class” and that it was his administration's top priority. Still, the numbers and facts are worrying, as the Well Fargo Investment Institute shows. This is compounded by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reporting that US credit card users owe more than $1 trillion in debt.
This demonstrates that despite all the upbeat prospects presented by Biden, Americans feel their wallets tightening, with more expensive products forcing them to turn increasingly to credit to buy core items. Yet, despite the alarming economic situation, Biden is forcing each US household to pay nearly $900 to support Ukraine’s futile war effort against Russia.
It has nearly become mainstream in the West to acknowledge that Ukraine has lost the war. However, it appears that Biden is willing to self-sabotage his re-election campaign, or as a minimum, the Democratic campaign, by continuing his failed Ukraine policy.
Although the majority of the Democratic Party, as the CNN poll showed, supports further aid to Ukraine, cracks are beginning to emerge. US presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. in a conversation with TV presenter Tucker Carlson on August 14, questioned how the US could send $130 billion to Ukraine when over 30 million Americans had food stamps taken away from them and when 15 million Americans do not have health insurance.
The economics of Biden’s proxy war on Russia is becoming a major issue in the US. With the US bracing itself for election season once again, new analyses and opinions are published daily questioning the US president’s policy. The revelation that American households are forking out nearly $900 for Ukraine as they struggle will only hurt the effort of the Democratic Party to be re-elected next year.