Why Biden plans to veto GOP $14.5 billion in military aid for Israel

By James On Nov 3, 2023

The House of Representatives on November 2 approved a military aid package of nearly $14.5 billion for Israel, a strong response from the United States to the war with Hamas, but also a partisan approach by new chairman Mike Johnson that poses a direct challenge poses for Democrats and President Joe Biden.

In a departure from norms, Mr Johnson’s package required emergency aid to be offset by cuts to government spending elsewhere. That approach established the new Republican Party’s conservative leadership in the House of Representatives, but also turned what would typically be a bipartisan vote into a divisive one between Democrats and Republicans. Mr. Biden has said he would veto the bill, which passed on a 226-196 vote, with 12 Democrats joining most Republicans in a largely party-line vote.

Mr. Johnson, R-La., said the Republican package would provide Israel with the help it needs to defend itself, free hostages held by Hamas and eradicate the militant Palestinian group, and accomplish all this “ while we also work to ensure responsible spending and reduce the size of the federal government.”

Democrats said this approach would only delay aid to Israel. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has warned that the “stunningly unserious” bill has no chance in the Senate.

The first substantive legislative effort in Congress to support Israel in the war falls far short of Mr. Biden’s request for nearly $106 billion, which would also support Ukraine in its fight against Russia, along with U.S. efforts to counter China and address security at the border with Israel. Mexico.

It is also the first major test for Johnson as speaker of the House of Representatives, as the Republican majority tries to return to work after the month of unrest since the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as speaker. Mr. Johnson has said he will focus on U.S. border security in addition to helping Ukraine, preferring to address Mr. Biden’s requests separately as Republican lawmakers increasingly resist helping Kiev.

The White House veto warning said Mr. Johnson’s approach “fails to meet the urgency of the moment” and would set a dangerous precedent by requiring emergency funding to come from cuts elsewhere.

While the amount for Israel in the House bill is similar to what Mr. Biden demanded, the White House said the Republican’s plans to fail to include humanitarian aid to Gaza is a “serious mistake” as the crisis deepens.

Biden on Wednesday called for a pause in the war to allow relief efforts.

“This bill would break with the normal, bipartisan approach to providing emergency national security assistance,” the White House wrote in its policy statement on the legislation. It said the Republican Party’s stance would have “devastating consequences for our security and alliances for years to come.”

Before the Nov. 2 vote, it was unclear how many Democrats would join Republicans. The White House had appealed directly to lawmakers, particularly Jewish Democrats, urging them to reject the bill.

White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, adviser to the president Steve Ricchetti and other senior White House staff have engaged House Democrats, said a person familiar with the situation who was granted anonymity to discuss it .

But the vote was difficult for some lawmakers, especially Democrats who wanted to support Israel and who could struggle to explain the trade-off to their voters, especially as the big AIPAC lobby and other groups encouraged passage. A total of two Republicans opposed the bill.

Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., who voted against the package, said, “It was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do.”

To pay for the bill, Republicans in the House of Representatives added provisions that would cut billions from the IRS, which Democrats passed and Mr. Biden signed into law last year as a way to crack down on tax fraud. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says this would ultimately cost the federal government a net $12.5 billion due to lost revenue from tax collections. All together, the cost of the aid package and the revenue reduction comes to more than $26 billion.

Republicans scoff at that assessment, but the independent budget office has historically been seen as a trusted arbiter.

Proponents said the package would support Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, purchase of advanced weapons and other military needs, and help protect and evacuate U.S. citizens. CBO estimated the total package at about $14.3 billion for Israel.

As the floor debate got underway, Democrats advocated for Republicans to restore the humanitarian aid Biden had requested and denounced the politicization of the typically broad-based support for Israel.

“Republicans are using the agony of an international crisis to help wealthy people who cheat on their taxes and big corporations who regularly dodge their taxes,” said Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee.

Representative Dan Goldman of New York described hiding in a stairwell with his wife and children while visiting Israel as rockets were fired in what he called the most horrific attack on Jews since the Holocaust.

Still, Mr. Goldman said he opposed the Republican-led bill as a “shameful attempt” to turn the situation in Israel and the Jewish people into a political weapon.

“Support for Israel can be a political game for my colleagues across the aisle,” the Democrat said. “But this is personal for us Jews and it is existential for the only Jewish nation in the world that is a safe haven from the rising tide of anti-Semitism around the world.”

Republicans have attacked Democrats who raise questions about Israeli war tactics as anti-Semitic. The House tried to censure the only Palestinian American lawmaker in Congress, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., over comments she made. The censorship measure failed.

Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., said he was “so grateful that there is no humanitarian aid,” which he argued could end up in the hands of Hamas.

In the Democratic-controlled Senate, Mr. Schumer made clear that the House bill would be rejected.

“The Senate will not take up the Republican Party’s deeply flawed proposal, and instead we will work on our own bipartisan relief package,” which includes money for Israel and Ukraine, as well as humanitarian aid for Gaza and efforts to confront China.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is balancing the need to support his Republican allies in the House of Representatives while also fighting to keep the relief package more in line with Biden’s broader request, believing that all issues are interrelated and require American attention.