Iowa’s Ashley Hinson says trip to Ukraine informed aid vote

CEDAR RAPIDS — Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson says Americans’ interests in arming Ukraine are more clear to her now following a visit to the country earlier this month.

President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law a $95 billion foreign aid measure that includes nearly $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific.

Biden immediately approved sending $1 billion in military assistance to Ukraine as a first installment, rushing badly needed weaponry and military equipment to aid its fight against Russia’s invasion of the Eastern European ally.

The package includes air defense capabilities, artillery rounds, armored vehicles and other weapons to help Ukrainian forces recover after months of setbacks.

Meanwhile, Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States.

The aid to Ukraine comes after months of delays and personal lobbying and pleading by the Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and tense negotiations with House Republicans. Conservatives in Congress have opposed sending additional assistance to Ukraine, with the war appearing to have no end in sight.

Hinson voted for the foreign aid bill and has supported as well as opposed previous funding packages providing military assistance to Ukraine.

She and Iowa GOP U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst met with Zelenskyy earlier this month in Ukraine’s northern Chernihiv Oblast.

Zelenskyy posted on X, formerly Twitter, that he briefed the bipartisan delegation of U.S. Congress members “on the situation on the battlefield, our army’s urgent needs, and the scale of the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.” He also “emphasized the vital need” for Congress to approve another military aid package to Ukraine.

‘Fact finding’

Hinson said the “fact-finding mission” helped solidify her support to get the foreign aid package “across the finish line.”

“So I thought it was really important, and my constituents thought that it was really important, that we know” and have "proper oversight“ on the funding and military equipment to ensure it reaches the intended recipients in Ukraine, Hinson said after touring the new location of Foundation 2 Crisis Services in Cedar Rapids on Thursday morning.

The Marion Republican also met with the U.S. brigadier general in charge of the 10,000 U.S. troops stationed in southern Poland.

“And hearing directly from him about, ‘Hey, we know exactly where this equipment is going.’ The U.S. military is working directly with Ukrainians to not only get that equipment where it needs to go, but to maintain it and help us sustain that effort. That was really important to see it in person and hear directly from them,” Hinson said.

She said the delegation also met with anti-corruption officials in Ukraine to discuss increasing accountability. They also discussed the importance of maintaining the port in Odesa, Ukraine, due to its strategic importance for global food supply.

"So I think that Americans’ interests in Ukraine are more clear to me after that visit, and not just in Ukraine, but in Poland and Moldova, where we were also able to visit,“ Hinson said.

Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has complained that European allies have not done enough for Ukraine. While stopping short of endorsing the funding package, Trump last week said Ukraine’s survival is important to the United States, a shift in tone just days before the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives passed the aid package.

“I agree with this sentiment,” Hinson said. “We need to make sure our allies in Europe are stepping up, and I think we're seeing increased incidence of that. … And, frankly, I've been saying this for months, we cannot let (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin win. We need to stand with our freedom-loving allies around the world. And I think we sent a pretty clear message that the United States does."

Mental health

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Hinson also highlighted her efforts in Congress to provide funding for mental health resources, particularly for veterans, and support for HUD programs like block grants that support mental health services at the state level.

Foundation 2 utilizes federal funding to support its emergency youth shelter — which provides housing and care for youth ages 11 to 17 experiencing homelessness or human trafficking, or have been placed in foster care — and to staff the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

Hinson said the visit Thursday “validated the need" for continued ”robust“ federal funding to meet increasing mental health and suicide prevention needs.

Foundation 2 bought the historic Witwer building in downtown Cedar Rapids and embarked on a $5.4 million capital campaign to create a new headquarters for the agency.

The new location consolidates services that had been in five locations. Katie Curtis, chief development officer at Foundation 2 Crisis Services, said the move allows for increased collaborations in the community, improved access to community-based crisis programs, and a new trauma-informed workspace.

The new location includes community training rooms, decompression space, training library, client triage room and more.

TikTok

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Biden on Wednesday also signed a measure that will force social media platform TikTok's Chinese parent company to divest from its U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban.

TikTok's critics, which include Hinson, have argued the app could put U.S. customer data at risk because Chinese law requires China's companies to share information with the government.

TikTok has maintained that it operates independently and protects U.S. data.

The law gives parent company ByteDance nine months, or potentially up to a year, to find an approved buyer for TikTok. If it fails to do so, TikTok will be banned from U.S. app stores.

Asked if she was worried the move could prompt other countries to force U.S. firms to sell their local operations or to transfer them to a foreign company, Hinson cited national security concerns because of TikTok’s Chinese ties.

“If it sets a precedent that we're not going to allow our adversaries to have control over Americans data, then I'm glad that precedent is being set,” she said.

“ … We have to do what we need to do to eliminate national security threats with adversaries like the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), who have shown that they're willing to weaponize those platforms and hack Americans data in our infrastructure networks (and) in or water, transportation, energy (sectors).

“So they have proven that they are not a good actor. So I think this is the right move and the right tone to set. … I don't know what their reaction will be on the other side, but we always have to do the right thing to protect American security.”

TikTok is expected to argue that a forced sale could violate its users’ free speech rights because a new owner could change the app’s content policies and reshape what users are able to freely share on the platform.

TikTok content creators, including businesses, have said they are worried about the platform's future that has enabled them to grow their business and build communities.

Hinson said the goal is not a ban but a forced divestiture by ByteDance because of concerns that top Chinese government officials have access to American users' data and could use such access to manipulate TikTok’s algorithm to sow divisiveness and discord, poison U.S. public opinion and suppress content critical of Beijing.

“This is not about eliminating your platform or your ability to get your message out,” she said. “This is about making sure that Americans data is protected, and I think we can have both, and I think that this bill does that balance.

“And I think within a year you'll see … there will be an American buyer who makes sure that our small business owners and content creators and that kids can still continue to watch the content that they want.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com

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