Lee to Biden: Just Tell the Truth
State of the Union: The Define the Mission Act might be able to clarify the Biden administration’s true intentions regarding funding Ukraine.

“The United States is heading down the same path that mired us in Middle Eastern conflicts for over two decades, all without clearly articulating the objective or how victory is achieved,” write Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio, both undoubtedly and understandably frustrated with America’s “endless” involvement in Ukraine.
The American public—along with some government officials, mainly Republicans—has grown increasingly irritated with Ukrainian President Zelensky’s chokehold over the American checkbook. With the U.S. enduring such great domestic problems like inflation, a massive and increasing national debt, and an apparently mentally incompetent president, it hardly seems realistic for Ukraine to expect us to keep funding their war with Russia. But it seems as if Zelensky’s lack of style is only paralleled by President Joe Biden’s lack of brain cells, so American funding has become the gift that keeps on giving.
Lee and Davidson have been vocal advocates for making the Biden administration justify such exorbitant funding at the behest of the Ukrainians, introducing companion bills in the Senate and House both titled the “Define the Mission Act.” Lee told The American Conservative, “The purpose of the Define the Mission Act is to get justification and a game plan in writing and on the record from the Biden administration. So far, all they have provided is ‘As long as it takes.’ This is not a strategy. Congress can’t evaluate whether a justification is valid or reasonable until we have one to consider. But I think the lack of safeguards and goalposts thus far makes it unlikely we’ll ever get a satisfactory answer.”
Regarding those in government who may disagree with the bill and who think that sending Ukraine unlimited funds is a nonissue, Lee noted, “Even my most hawkish colleagues can agree that we need a plan of action for U.S. engagement in Ukraine, despite having different approaches to the spending component.”
Hearkening back to the comparison that he and Davidson made in their Fox News article, the Utah senator told TAC, “We learned from Afghanistan and Iraq just how out-of-hand our operations can become when missions and objectives are undefined moving targets. I don’t think any member of Congress wants to willfully repeat the same mistakes of recent ‘forever wars.’”
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It’s certainly not outlandish to suggest that the Biden administration should be held accountable for the $113 billion and counting that has been sent to fund Ukrainian military operations and the salaries of Ukrainian first responders. A recent Politico story even suggested that the administration itself is second-guessing the massive aid that has already been sent overseas.
Lee commented, “We just learned that behind closed doors, the Biden administration is very concerned about corruption and misuse of American resources in Ukraine. Yet, from day one, the administration has mocked and dismissed those who raise these concerns publicly. No more running this war from the shadows of the White House. It is time to require President Biden to show Congress his game plan.”
If the Define the Mission Act can raise the veil on the Biden administration’s true intentions and feelings about Ukraine funding, perhaps our questionable part in this endless fight can come to a close.