The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | April 18th, 2024: Johnson Risks Speakership On Ukraine Gambit & Foreign Sabotage In Germany

Episode Date: April 18, 2024

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin:    Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson is bucking the conservative wing of the GOP in his riskiest move yet, announcing plans to bring three foreign aid bills, including a package for Ukraine, to the floor for a vote as early as Saturday. We’ll discuss a case of foreign sabotage in Germany, where two German-Russian nationals were recently arrested for plotting attacks aimed at undermining military support for Ukraine. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin.  Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Thursday, 18 April. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. First, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson is bucking the conservative wing of the GOP in his riskiest move yet, announcing plans to bring three foreign aid bills, including a package for Ukraine, to the floor for a vote as early as Saturday. Also, we'll discuss a case of foreign sabotage in Germany, where two German, and Russian nationals were recently arrested for plotting attacks aimed at undermining military support for Ukraine. But first, our afternoon spotlight, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled plans on Wednesday to bring three separate aid bills for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan to the floor for a vote as soon as Saturday in a move that could spark a revolt within his own party. Sorry, that should read, spark yet another revolt within his own party. The separate packages will include $26 billion for Israel, $60 billion to Ukraine, and $8 billion for Taiwan and other allies in the Indo-Pacific region. Johnson also included $9 billion in humanitarian aid in the Israel package, which Democrats had said was non-negotiable if he wanted their support.

That's according to a CBS News report. Notably, the Ukraine aid package includes a requirement that Biden sent long-range army tax. missile systems, referred to as attackums, to leaders in Kiev to defend against Russian aerial bombardments. Leaders in Ukraine have made it clear that they are running out of defensive missiles and in dire need of new air defense systems. The attackams are tactical ballistic missiles, capable of flying up to approximately 190 miles. Now Johnson is facing intense pressure from the conservative wing of the House caucus, and if he's unable to thread the needle on these critical votes, his speakership, well, could be at risk. Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green

has even threatened to put forward a motion to remove him, and she found support this week from fellow Republican Representative Thomas Massey. To modify his critics within the Republican caucus, Johnson will also introduce a fourth bill later on Thursday that could reportedly include stricter sanctions on Russia, China, and Iran, measures to allow the sale of frozen assets of Russian oligarchs and even a potential measure to force the sale of the CCP-linked social media behemoth TikTok. How often do you hear the word behemoth? Johnson stated that he intends to give all House members 72 hours to review the aid bills, setting up critical votes as early as Saturday. Now, we should note, the urgency is due to the fact that both chambers are scheduled to be in recess

next week. Really? So the world's on fire. There are. critical issues to be decided, but let's not forget we've got a recess plan for next week. President Biden already threw his weight behind Johnson's efforts, saying he'll sign the aid bills into law immediately if they pass. The Senate, however, could throw a wrench into the works. Well, look, it's D.C. Somebody needs to be wrench-tossing. I mean, you wouldn't want important stuff to get done. And did I mention the recess? As a reminder, the Senate passed a 95 billion for an aid package earlier this year that included all the above funds for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, but in a single package. The chamber is likely to take issue with any number of changes

that the House makes within their individual aid packages. Now, the fate of the aid packages in the House remains far from certain. For one, Johnson will need the support of a good portion of the Democrat caucus. Within his own party, many conservative members reportedly still want to tie Ukraine aid to border security measures. The House Freedom Caucus was apparently particularly disgruntled, accusing Johnson of, quote, surrendering the last opportunity we have to combat the border crisis. Now, Marjorie Taylor Green said she would not make a decision on her potential motion to remove Johnson until she sees the language in the proposed bills. She did, however, propose an amendment for Ukraine aid that would force any member who votes to approve more funding to conscript in

the Ukrainian military. Now, conversely, anyone voting against Ukraine aid would be forced to put an I-stand-with- Putin bumper sticker on their car, and a little Russian flag emoji on their Instagram profile. Look, I don't even know what the correct term here is for what's happening on Capitol Hill. Clown show, freak show, carnival. This is what happens when neither political party has any centrists, or, I guess rather, the ones they have are bullied into silence. Nothing of significance gets done in Washington because both sides are scared of their fringes, of the bomb throwers on the edges of their respective parties. Republican Representative Lauren Bobart, meanwhile, predicted that the foreign aid votes,

quote, could be the beginning of the end for the speaker. Now Johnson gave an impassioned defense of his position in remarks on Thursday, saying, quote, if I operated out of fear over a motion to vacate, I would never be able to do my job. He added, quote, I think providing lethal aid to Ukraine right now is critically important. I believe she and Vladimir Putin and Iran really are in access of evil. I think they're in coordination on this. I think that Putin would continue the march through Europe if he were allowed. I think he might go to the Balkans next.

I think he might have a showdown with Poland or one of our NATO allies. To put it bluntly, Johnson said, I would rather send bullets to Ukraine than American boys. End quote. Coming up after the break, we'll take a look at the case of two German-Russian nationals who were recently arrested by German authorities for plotting attacks aimed at undermining military support for Ukraine on behalf of Russia. I'll be right back. Welcome back to the afternoon bulletin. As the war continues on the battlefields of Ukraine, it's worth remembering that Russia is also fighting a war in the shadows with the goal of disrupting efforts to provide aid to the enemy. As most know by now, Russia's intelligence

and disinformation apparatus are well-resourced, motivated, and effective in their efforts to spread disinformation and chaos. German officials announced today that a pair of German-Russian nationals were arrested in Germany on Wednesday on suspicion of planning sabotage attacks aimed at undermining military support for Ukraine. The two suspects are identified only as Dieter S and Alexander J due to German privacy laws. Yeah, you wouldn't want to out-trader and terrorists. That could set a bad precedent. Now, they're accused of espionage and preparing for attacks on critical military infrastructure, including U.S. military installations. The German federal prosecutor's office stated that the first suspect, Dieter S, a former fighter for pro-Kremlin forces

in eastern Ukraine, had been communicating with agents of the Russian Secret Service since October 2003. The discussions revolved around potential explosive or arson attacks on military facilities, particularly those used by U.S. forces and sites where Ukrainian soldiers receive training on U.S. Abrams' tanks. The second suspect, Alexander J., is alleged to have assisted Dieter S. from at least March this year, helping to gather information on potential targets. Both men are accused of working for a foreign secret service and carrying out activity for sabotage purposes, as well as obtaining security-threatening depictions of military installations, according to a statement from German prosecutors. Dieter S. reportedly took multiple trips

to scout and photograph potential targets and sharing this information with his Russian contacts. The German Interior Minister said of the arrests, quote, Our security authorities have prevented possible explosive attacks that were intended to target and undermine our military assistance to Ukraine. She described the case as a particularly serious case of alleged spy activity for Putin's criminal regime. As you can imagine, the arrests have increased diplomatic tension between the two countries. Well, yeah, that happens when one country is plotting to blow up another country's military sites. Germany has summoned the Russian ambassador.

That'll be an awkward conversation. Of course, the Kremlin, and this will shock you, has denied any knowledge of the espionage activities. And that, my friends, is the PD. afternoon bulletin for Thursday, 18 April. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And be sure to check out our premium membership at PDBpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker.

And I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool.