St. Mary reps voted against Ukraine aid

The U.S. House members who represent St. Mary Parish joined other members of the Louisiana delegation in supporting some of Speaker Mike Johnson’s foreign aid legislation that passed Saturday in dramatic fashion.
But both, U.S. Reps. Clay Higgins, R-Lafayette, and Garret Graves, R-Baton Rouge, voted against the centerpiece, a $61 billion package of military and economic aid for Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Both supported another key foreign bill, a $26.4 billion package of military aid to Israel and humanitarian aid for Gaza.
The passage of those bills and two other pieces of foreign aid legislation Saturday are being hailed as a victory for Johnson, R-Shreveport. But the speaker now faces a challenge from hard-right members of his own caucus that could oust him from the House leadership.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, has announced her intention to call for a vote on Johnson’s speakership and has even called for him to resign.
The House-passed bills will now be considered by the Senate, which had passed differing versions of foreign aid bills.
Here’s how the Louisiana delegation voted on the foreign aid bills:
—Aid to Ukraine. The measure calls for $61 billion in aid, including $9 billion framed as a forgivable loan if Congress chooses.
Voting for: Johnson, Troy Carter, D-New Orleans, Steve Scalise, R-Metairie.
Voting against: Higgins, Graves, Julia Letlow, R-Monroe.
The bill passed 311-112.
—Military aid to Israel, humanitarian aid to Gaza. The humanitarian share of the $26.4 billion package is $9.4 billion. The bill passed 366-68.
Voting for: Higgins, Graves, Johnson, Scalise, Letlow, Carter.
—Aid for Indo-Pacific allies. The House bill would appropriate $8.1 billion in aid for Taiwan, the Philippines and other allies in the region. The bill passed 385-34.
Voting for: Graves, Johnson, Scalise, Letlow, Carter.
Voting against: Higgins.
— The TikTok-sanctions bill. This legislation would require China-based ByteDance to divest itself of the social media app TikTok. If it doesn’t, the app will be banned in the United States. The bill would also stiffen sanctions against Iran, Russia and China. It would liquidate $5 billion in Russian assets to provide more aid to Ukraine. The bill passed 360-58.
Voting for: Higgins, Graves, Johnson, Scalise, Letlow, Carter.