Brink loses: $70k in Ukr donations a missed opportunity to help Ukraine

 Former US-Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink lost handily in Michigan 7. She based her campaign on “standing up” to Donald Trump and resigning as Ambassador in protest. She came in 2nd in the 3-way race: losing by 16%.

The pro-Ukraine community rallied to her side. I counted at least 3 high-profile events which raised more than $70k for her. (Michigan Ukraine community, in DC and another in NYC.)

For comparison, this is more than the Ukraine community has given to the 100 sitting US Senators or the entire rest of the House combined.

While she would have been a positive voice for Ukraine, she would have only been 1 of 435 House Members, the most junior and in the minority party. In other words, not a game changer.

American Ukraine Committee believe it is wasted money trying to “win” an election. There are not enough Ukraine votes to swing an election result and not enough Ukraine money to matter. That $70k was 2% of money she raised.

Instead, wait to see who wins and build relations.

In Michigan 7, both the incumbent and Dem nominee are good on Ukraine. Wait to see who wins and then reach out to them.

Focus on leadership: Congress is hierarchical. Policy is set by Chairmen, not back-benchers.

Remain bi-partisan: an unspoken issue of the MI7 race was the incumbent was a pro-Ukraine Republican and co-sponsor of the Russian sanction bill. Rule #1 in DC, don’t campaign against those who support you. If you do, you are just a partisan campaign group, instead of an issue-based advocacy group.

And of course, House logic is such, that you don’t need a majority of the House to pass a bill, but 98% of the majority party, the Hastert rule, if not the bill won’t be brought to vote. So, taking out a pro-Ukraine Congressman makes it harder to pass pro-Ukraine legislation.

If you want ideas on who to support who can help Ukraine, please see Amukrpac.org

In other news:

The big-item Dem Senate race is still too close to call. While not explicitly about Ukraine, it is symbolic of Dem-party debate as to future on foreign relations and military spending.

As of 3am, El-Sayed had 48.6% and Stevens at 47.1%. El-Sayed comes out of the DSA, progressive, left-wing of the Dem party which calls for less military spending, retreat from NATO and openly abandoning traditional allies. This progressive wing voted no on the NDAA as well as several key Ukraine bills. While El-Sayed hasn’t mentioned Ukraine, he most likely would a net negative for Ukraine. Stevens represents a more traditional, centrist Dem who is more willing to vote for defense spending and support allies.

In Missouri, Rep Bell a moderate Dem held off a challenge from Cori Bush, a DSA-radical who he unseated in 24. Rep Bell sponsored the NDAA Amendment calling for DIU to open office in Kyiv that American Ukraine Committee championed. In the deep blue district, he is all but guaranteed to return to Congress.

Correction: The original version of this article stated that Razom organized an event for Bridgett Brink. Razom for Ukraine did not raise or contribute funds for the candidate and was not involved in supporting her campaign. American Ukraine Committee apologizes for the error.