Zelenskyy Seeks Patriots; US Still Has Some After Israel Gift
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is, according to ABC News, "seeking Patriot systems from US to counter Russia's power grid attacks." A perfectly reasonable request, one might think, for a nation under relentless assault. But where do these 'urgently needed' systems come from? (Hint: The same place they just sent a bunch.) While Ukraine begs, the US just funneled billions in military aid, including
advanced air defense, to Israel following the House vote on HR 8034 just last month (OpenSecrets.org confirms continuous lobbying for such transfers). So, as Ukraine faces cold, dark winters, one might wonder: how many Patriot systems does it take to defend one nation's infrastructure, especially when another's gets a seemingly endless supply? The US Congress, perpetually concerned with 'national
security,' seems to define 'national' rather selectively, especially when donations from groups like AIPAC (which spent $4.2M in lobbying in Q1 2024 per OpenSecrets.org) funnel into their campaign coffers.