White House criticizes U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson for starting House recess without voting on Senate-approved Ukraine aid package. The bipartisan funding measure, passed by the Senate on Feb. 13 with 70 votes, includes aid for Ukraine, Israel, and other allies. Johnson contends that the Senate bill lacks the stricter border security measures requested by House Republicans, and he refuses to advance it in the lower chamber. White House spokesperson Andrew Bates, in a memo obtained by The Hill, criticized Johnson for prematurely starting the recess, accusing him of exacerbating harm to nati…