| | | There weren't any pay for play schemes. Withholding aid over corruption was US policy done out in the open:
How does Joe Biden withholding aid to Ukraine differ from Trump doing the same?
Gary Sharpe, Retired Radio Engineer
Updated Jan 27
The US often withholds aid from countries whose internal or external policies are not in line with American interests. Braggadocio aside, Vice President Biden was acting entirely within the law and officially representing the US Government’s interests which, in this case, also aligned with the EU’s and NATO’s. Part of those interests were in helping the Ukraine Government root out left-over Russian corruption.
The old Prosecutor, Viktor Shokin had sidetracked the corruption investigations into Burisma some two years before Hunter Biden became a Barisma board member. This slow walking of a corruption investigation is one of the main reasons the US, the EU, and even NATO were encouraging President Poroshenko to dismiss Shokin. Joe Biden became the messenger saying, effectively, “Show us you are against corruption in your Chief Prosecutor’s office… and we (the US Government) will give you aid.” Almost all US foreign aid agreements come with an anti-corruption clause from Congress, not to mention other conditions, none of which benefit the President or the Vice President personally.
One should understand the distinction of how this differs from withholding aid from a country (an ally, at that) for the purpose of getting some kind of aid or “juice” to use against a chief political rival in an upcoming election. This translates to asking for a foreign country’s assistance to one’s own US Presidential campaign. As almost everyone knows by now, this is specifically illegal. No interpretations needed. |
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