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A Republican lawmaker read a book by Dr. in the Senate. Seuss in an effort to delay the $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Senator J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, read one of Dr.’s most famous works. Suess for: ‘Oh, the Places You’ll Go!’ he dedicated it to his son Vivek on his fourth birthday.
The Republican paused shortly after arguing against the foreign aid package to send his son a birthday greeting. “Now I want to move on to another argument,” Vance said on the Senate floor Monday afternoon. ‘But before I do that, I have to think about something that is personally close to my heart. I have three beautiful children.’
“And I’m sorry, Vivek, that I can’t be with you for your birthday dinner, but I want you to know that Dad loves you very much,” he continued. “And I’m going to read this for the record, because maybe you can watch it at home.” The father-of-three then read the entire book while lying on the floor, before sending a message to his son: “I love you.” After sending his son a birthday wish, Vance quickly got back to work.
“Coming back to the matter at hand… how much time is left?” Vance’s stunt is reminiscent of another one by Dr. Suess-inspired Senate floor speech from over a decade ago. In 2013, Senator Ted Cruz infamously read “Green Eggs and Ham” on the floor during an effort to suppress Obamacare.
“When Americans tried it, they discovered they didn’t like green eggs and ham, and they didn’t like Obamacare either,” Cruz said at the time. “They didn’t like Obamacare in a box, with a fox, in a house or with a mouse. It does not work.’ Vance made multiple attempts to thwart the deal’s approval, including sending a memo announcing the deal to all his Republican colleagues on Monday morning.
He also hosted a Twitter Space that evening to bash the foreign aid package with fellow Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin. Elon Musk, venture capitalist David Sacks and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy were also involved in the conversation about the $95 billion deal. Despite Vance’s efforts, the massive package was ultimately passed.
The bill secured the necessary 60 senators needed to send the legislation to the House of Representatives Tuesday morning, after a rare overnight session that ended in a 70-29 vote. In total, the package includes $61 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel in its war against Hamas, and $4.83 billion to support partners in the Indo-Pacific, including Taiwan, to deter China’s aggression.
Last week, Republicans struck a $118 billion bipartisan deal to strengthen border security while funding Ukraine and Israel. They accused the country of not going far enough to secure the border and said it would reinforce Biden’s “open border” policy. Getting Senate Republicans on board with the thinner $95 billion deal without immigration measures wasn’t easy as tempers flared over the tanked border deal. Ultimately, more than a dozen Republicans joined Democrats in voting for the bill, fearing it would embolden Russian President Putin.
The vote Tuesday morning had the support of 22 Republicans. However, two Democrats, Sens. Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Peter Welch of Vermont, and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, voted against it. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., meanwhile, has indicated that the Senate package has an uncertain future.