Chuck Schumer

U.S. President Joe Biden shakes hands with actor, director and producer George Clooney during the Kennedy Center honorees reception at the White House in Washington, Dec. 4, 2022.

A growing number of Democrats in the US Congress are increasingly skeptical about President Joe Biden's ability to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming November 5 election, according to Reuters. Concerns among Democrats have become more evident following closed-door meetings, although specific plans of action remain unclear.

The meeting, expected to be brief, was not originally on the leaders’ agendas due to their busy schedules. The primary focus will be to review recent developments in Greek-Turkish relations.

The US Senate has overwhelmingly approved a substantial aid package totaling 95 billion USD, aimed at supporting key American allies, including Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. The largest portion of the package, 61 billion USD, is earmarked for Ukraine, while Israel will receive 26 billion USD, with 9 billion USD designated for humanitarian aid in Gaza.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Saturday approved long-delayed military aid to Ukraine in a rare show of bipartisan unity, while also bolstering Israel and Taiwan defenses and threatening to ban Chinese-owned TikTok.

A sweeping U.S. foreign aid package, including $60 billion for Ukraine, passed a key procedural vote Sunday, although opposition from right-wing Republicans may block it from becoming law.

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky will travel to Washington Tuesday to meet US President Joe Biden and plead his case before Republicans balking at sending more money for his fight against Russia, amid warnings aid will run out in weeks.

They are pushing for stricter immigration control measures at the US-Mexico border.
The aid package was voted 49 to 51 by senators, meaning the $110.5 billion aid package fell short of the 60 votes needed in the 100-member Senate to open the way for debate.

Republican senators blocked a White House request for $106 billion in emergency aid, primarily for Ukraine and Israel, on Wednesday as conservatives balked at the exclusion of immigration reforms they had demanded as part of the package.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky unexpectedly canceled a scheduled videolink appeal to US senators Tuesday as Washington is set for a showdown on funding for the war with Russia.

Zelensky was to appear during a classified briefing, a day before the Senate takes the first procedural vote on an emergency aid package that includes more than $60 billion for Kyiv.