Chef José Andrés, who founded World Central Kitchen, which provides food assistance to those struggling after devastating developments in locations worldwide, called out Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) Monday amid an ongoing delay in Congress setting up new U.S. aid for Ukraine amid a Russian invasion.
Andrés was recently nominated by prominent Democrats including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) for the Nobel Peace Prize. He was responding on X (formerly Twitter) to reporting on some of the latest Russian moves in Ukraine.
“@SpeakerJohnson I hope you are proud….letting @KremlinRussia_E decimate Ukranian troops….have a good praying week….you become a leader, for what?” Andrés asked. “To do nothing? Leaders lead….with action….! Show us what you got Sir….or move aside…”. Johnson is known as religious, aligning himself specifically with arch-conservative causes.
Johnson and other Republicans have been clamoring for action on the border and immigration, though Republicans voted down a bipartisan deal linking foreign aid and border changes during recent proceedings in the Senate. Though the deal didn’t make it out of the Senate, GOP leadership in the House — meaning the small group led now by Johnson — quickly began expressing their opposition.
And now, after the Senate managed to approve a foreign aid deal setting up assistance for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, Johnson’s corner is still demanding action on the border, though Republicans themselves scuttled a plan that would have given the federal government new powers to shut the southern border between ports of entry, meaning established crossing points. Republicans characterized the proposed arrangements as deficient.
Republicans have embarked on an ongoing series of trips to the southern border, which is spurring frustration. “The Senate had a bipartisan border bill and you rejected it because Trump told you to. Turn the car around, head to the Capitol and introduce a border bill to fix the problem because you already know what it is,” former Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Steele recently wrote on X in response to yet another trip.
