Behind the new bipartisan push for $55 billion for Ukraine

• "This bipartisan bill will strengthen President Trump's negotiating hand with Vladimir Putin and finally put an end to this senseless war," Shaheen said in a statement.

Between the lines: It's also an attempt to replicate the success the Senate had with a sanctions package it considered earlier this summer.

• That bill, which collected 85 cosponsors, never made it to the floor, but Trump eventually adopted its basic concept—secondary sanctions on Russia's trading partners.
• Then Trump accelerated the deadline, to 10 days, which falls on Aug. 8.

Driving the news: This afternoon, Trump announced that his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, would go to Russia after a visit to Israel.

• Trump didn't sound overly optimistic.
• "Yeah, going to Israel and then he's going to Russia, believe it or not," Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday.

Zoom in: The bipartisan legislation is written to appeal to Republicans, many of whom have deep concerns about America's continued support for a war they don't think is winnable.

• It aims to lower the costs by tapping frozen Russian assets, and it emphasizes that most of the money will flow back into America's defense industrial base.

• The most recent Ukraine aid package, totaling over $60 billion, passed Congress in April 2024. Funding for Taiwan and Israel had to be added for it to clear the House. President Biden signed it into law.

Zoom out: Trump is clearly frustrated with Putin and his lack of interest in a peace deal with Ukraine.

• He's also questioning whether even secondary sanctions will convince Putin to take peace talks more seriously.
• "I don't know if it's going to affect Russia," Trump mused on his flight back from Scotland, explaining his decision to impose sanctions in the shortened time frame.