The White House on Friday asked Congress for nearly $106 billion to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and U.S. border security, but offered no strategy for securing the money from a broken Congress.
  • bob@lemmy.ml
    687·
    8 months ago

    Can’t forgive student debt can’t pay for healthcare yet we can have war, ffs

      • knfrmity
        6·
        8 months ago

        Sort of. The US government has created the extraordinary privilege of dollar hegemony, which lets them issue money ad nauseum at the expense of the rest of the world. This privilege ends when the rest of the world stops underwriting this debt, as is slowly happening under the broad name of dedollarization.

  • GnuLinuxDude@lemmy.ml
    356·
    8 months ago

    “defense” industry lapdogs absolutely drooling at the steak Genocide Joe’s dangling over their heads

  • neglector0669@lemmy.ml
    3710·
    8 months ago

    While I’m openly in favor of supporting Ukraine, it’s important to note that the vast majority of this type of military aid is provided in kind.

    So really, it’s a proposal to give US Defense contractors $100b+ to replenish and restock the DOD with new kit and munitions for the old kit and munitions that we’re providing to Ukraine. Which then get into the use accounting tricks e.g. depreciation values, etc.

    The annual military aid to Israel is a little different, it’s more like a loss leader coupon: give Israel money that they have to spend with US Defense contractors, which then also incentivizes them spending their own budget on complementary systems that can be integrated with those systems, munitions, support contracts, etc.

    Although in this case, I believe it’s primarily munitions and other kit that the DOD already has in warehouses.

    This is oversimplified, but I just see these headline figures always being confused for pallets of cash.

    • TokenBoomer@lemmy.world
      3411·
      8 months ago

      I don’t live in Ukraine. I need healthcare now. Let Blackrock and Vanguard fund Ukraine.

      • UniquesNotUseful@lemmy.world
        1122·
        8 months ago

        Did you have healthcare before Russia invaded Ukraine and started murdering babies? Was it even on the cards?

        It’s not an economic factor either. US health costs are much higher than other developed nations. It spends 17% of GDP, almost double of Germany (next highest).

        Spending is without the positive outcomes. Infant mortality of 5.4 deaths per 1,000 live births (17,000 extra dead babies a year Vs an average.rate), for context you are worse than Russia with 4.9 but better tha Chile 5.9). 23.8 maternal deaths per 100,000 births being 3 times higher than most wealthy nations.

        The economic considerations are that you have a lot of heath businesses. If you socialised medicine and reduced spend, you may improve health outcomes but how would they pay for the very nice buildings they have loans for?

        Finally, US doesn’t want universal healthcare as a society. Whilst they may be financially wrecked by costs and live shorter more painful lives, that is far preferential than seeing the low income family get the same free cancer treatment for their child.

        • TokenBoomer@lemmy.world
          162·
          8 months ago

          Nice rhetoric. I’ve wanted healthcare since 2009, when the “Yes we can” guy didn’t. Your talking points have been disproven and Americans polled overwhelmingly want nationalized healthcare. Source. You provided no source because you pulled it out of your actuarial ass.

        • limonfiesta@lemmy.worldEnglish
          102·
          8 months ago

          Did you have healthcare before Russia invaded Ukraine

          Yes, I did until they sent me a letter informing me that they were booting me off my Medicare for All plan and converting it into artillery shells for the Kherson offensive.

      • neglector0669@lemmy.ml
        822·
        8 months ago

        We aren’t getting it eitherway, so in the meantime, at least some of our weapons are being used to defend against an imperial power, instead of to advance one.

        • regul@lemm.ee
          121·
          8 months ago

          You think the US isn’t funding Ukraine to advance its own imperial interests?

          You truly think we’re just doing it because we just love “democracy” so much, or something like that?

          Buddy, an imperial power is winning either way.

        • TokenBoomer@lemmy.world
          121·
          8 months ago

          I don’t think the next generation is going to accept that excuse, nor should they. Enlightened Centrism is what got us to this point.

    • Trudge [Comrade]
      171·
      8 months ago

      Yes, the correct nuanced take is pallets of cash to arms dealers and pallets of weapons to allies and puppets.

      • masquenox@lemmy.ml
        8·
        8 months ago

        If the Palestinians had received a quarter of what Ukraine has received in the last three years Israel would be no more. I certainly don’t have a problem with that.

      • neglector0669@lemmy.ml
        56·
        8 months ago

        Do I support giving arms to Israel? No, but that wasn’t the point of my post. It was an very high level explainer to head off the inevitable portrayal of this as a direct cash transfer.

  • DagonPie@kbin.social
    92·
    8 months ago

    I wonder what a poll in the US would look like if they let the people vote on this. But its an all or nothing vote. Like we vote to give both countries aid or neither.

  • towelie@lemmy.today
    92·
    8 months ago

    What happens when we can no longer move balances around and dish out money to maintain the global status quo

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    3·
    8 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Some Republican lawmakers have grown skeptical of the need to fund Ukraine’s war with Russia, and have threatened to halt government altogether to put an end to chronic U.S. budget deficits and fiscal spending fueled by $31.4 trillion in debt.

    “The world is watching and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities,” said Biden’s budget director, Shalanda Young, in a letter to acting House Speaker Patrick McHenry.

    She also told Congress of plans to submit another request for funding to deal with natural disasters, high-speed internet, child care and wild-land firefighter pay “in coming days.”

    Some $14.3 billion of Friday’s funding request for the 2024 fiscal year would be dedicated to Israel, much of it to support the country’s air and missile defense systems and other weapons purchases.

    The request includes billions to replenish the country’s military equipment, and would provide economic and security aid and support for refugees in the United States.

    “The unwavering bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States is incredibly encouraging for all of our warriors and for our entire nation,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on Friday on social media.

    The original article contains 735 words, the summary contains 194 words. Saved 74%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!