WASHINGTON — A bill to provide Israel with more military aid was defeated in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, halting Speaker Mike Johnson’s attempt to separate Israel from other national security priorities, including helping Ukraine defend itself against Israel’s military invasion. Russia and its deterrence of border crossings at the US-Mexico border fell apart. .
The vote gave individual lawmakers another chance to express their support for Israel to voters and could be used during the campaign to criticize those who voted against it. But it has done little to generate momentum toward the passage of a final relief package.
It was also the second setback of the day for Republican leaders in the House of Representatives. Just minutes before the vote, their bid to oust Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas failed due to opposition from three Republicans in the House of Representatives.
The House of Representatives had already voted in support of an Israeli aid package. Johnson raised that package in November, on one of his first days as new Speaker of the House of Representatives. The vote was in response to Hamas and other militants killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and capturing about 240 men, women and children in an attack on October 7.
Last year’s measure also included cuts to the Internal Revenue Service. This time, there were no efforts to offset the new spending, alienating some Republican members concerned about federal deficits. Meanwhile, Democrats largely remained opposed, concerned that passage of the bill would not provide an avenue to get more aid to Ukraine. The bill did receive more Democratic support than during the November vote, but not nearly enough to pass.
Johnson resorted to dealing with the bill through an expedited process that requires a two-thirds majority. That’s because Republicans were unlikely to muster even the simple majority needed to set the terms for debate on the bill. Such a procedural vote is generally a routine matter but has become problematic for the current Republican majority, which can afford to lose just three Republicans on party-line votes. The vote for more Israeli aid was 250 to 180, well below the two-thirds threshold needed to pass.
Ahead of the vote, the White House released a statement announcing President Joe Biden’s intention to veto the bill if it reached his desk. And Democratic leaders in both chambers said the only way forward requires a bipartisan approach.
“The time has come for House Republicans to end the political stunts and come together in support of a comprehensive approach to our national security priorities,” Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and other members of the leadership told reporters before the vote. colleagues.
The bill called for approximately $17.6 billion in military aid for Israel and to replenish U.S. defense systems. About $4 billion would have gone to supplement Israel’s missile defense systems and $1.2 billion to counter short-range rocket and mortar threats. There is also funding for the purchase of advanced weapons systems and for improving the production of artillery and other munitions.
To ensure that the aid does not jeopardize U.S. preparedness, it includes $4.4 billion to supplement U.S. weapons supplies supplied to Israel. There is also $3.3 billion available for current US military operations in the region.
Johnson said that since the House of Representatives passed its first Israeli military aid package, the “situation has become much more dangerous.”
“We must support Israel now and we cannot wait any longer,” Johnson said.
Democrats said presidential politics played a role in the route Republicans in the House of Representatives took to continue solely aiding Israel.
“Trump doesn’t want to support Ukraine, and he doesn’t want a border deal because it hurts him politically. What they get out of it is the endorsement of Donald Trump,” said Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democratic member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Rep. Lois Frankel of Florida was among the Democrats who spoke in favor of the bill, saying she feared “a divided Congress will embolden Israel’s opponents and endanger our own military.”
“Israel’s security is our security,” Frankel said.
A similar political debate took shape across the Capitol. Republicans overwhelmingly criticized a carefully negotiated plan unveiled this weekend that included policies intended to curb illegal border crossings with $60 billion in war aid for Ukraine, plus billions for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza.
Republicans said border security provisions were inadequate, while Democrats said Republicans were simply afraid to thwart Trump, even though they had previously pushed for border security to be included in an aid package for Ukraine. The gap raises the question of whether an emergency package will be passed.
“We all know what’s going on here: Donald Trump would rather keep the chaos going on at the border so he can exploit it during his campaign, rather than letting the Senate do the right thing and solve the problem,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. , DY “He would rather let Ukraine suffer on the battlefield than be tough on Putin.”