“Johnson received a key intelligence briefing from CIA Director Bill Burns, who painted a picture of the dire situation on the battlefield in Ukraine and the global consequences of inaction, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation. The briefing left a lasting impression, and Johnson became increasingly convinced the fate of Western democracy was on his shoulders.” How Mike Johnson came to embrace Ukraine aid and defy his right flank. The House chose democracy over authoritarianism. Let’s hope this starts a trend.

+ “To make an avalanche takes more than one tumbling rock. Still, the pro-Ukraine, anti-Trump vote in the House is a very, very big rock. On something that mattered intensely to him—that had become a badge of pro-Trump identity—Trump’s own party worked with Democrats in the House and Senate to hand him a stinging defeat. This example could become contagious.” David Frum in The Atlantic (Gift Article) on a key player in all of this: Trump Deflates. It wasn’t just Putin who lost in the House vote on Ukraine aid.