 The United States House of Representatives has voted to rush $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine as it battles invading Russian forces, along with $1.5 trillion to keep U.S. government programs operating through September 30 and avoid agency shutdowns as we can. The House approved a wide-ranging appropriations in bipartisan votes, ascending the legislation to the Senate, which aims to act by a midnight Friday deadline when existing U.S. government funds expire. Now, the aid for Ukraine is intended to help bolster its military as it battles Russian forces and provide humanitarian assistance to citizens, including an estimated 1.5 million refugees already seeking safety abroad. The vote was held in two parts, the first which focused on defense measures passed by 361 to 69, the non-defense part of the aid package passed by a vote of 260 to 171.