Speaker Mike Johnson faces one of the toughest weeks of his career as pressure mounts on him to pass a foreign aid package that could lead to his resignation.
Following Iranian drone and missile attacks on Israel this weekend, Congress is facing calls to greenlight billions of dollars for the Jewish country, which is embroiled in conflict with Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah.
The Saturday night salvo of more than 300 missiles and drones was Iran’s first direct attack on Israel in history. Now, U.S. leaders see delivering aid quickly as essential to bolstering the country’s anti-missile and anti-drone defense systems.
The Senate passed a $95 billion foreign aid package in February that provides money to Israel, but the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has not touched the measure because many conservatives do not want to distribute money abroad before security legislation passes. of the southern border has been adopted.
Meanwhile, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has initiated the process to impeach Johnson, warning him against bringing the Senate bill to a vote.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is facing pressure from left and right to quickly pass foreign aid money to Israel after the country was attacked by Iran over the weekend
Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday in response to the April 1 Israeli bombing of an Iranian consulate in Syria
Furthermore, the White House has also been adamant in calling on Congress to take action on foreign aid.
“We are going to continue to ensure that Israel can defend itself,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told Fox News on Monday.
“We need to make sure they get what they need and that’s why we need the additional approval in the House of Representatives so quickly.”
And the Biden administration has made clear that it opposes a bill that would provide funding only for Israel.
“We oppose a standalone bill that would only work for Israel, as we have seen proposed,” Kirby said Monday. “We are against a stand-alone bill.”
In total, the additional package includes approximately $60 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel and $4.83 billion to support partners in the Indo-Pacific, including Taiwan.
The White House and Pentagon have repeatedly pushed for this package, citing recent Russian frontline gains and the Iranian missile strike as signals that the money must be delivered quickly.
“The best and fastest way to fulfill our obligations to our ally Israel and our partner Ukraine is for the House of Representatives to pass the bipartisan bill passed in the Senate,” Kirby said Monday.
Johnson, who met with Donal Trump at Mar-a-Lago last Friday, has also said he wants to get foreign aid to Ukraine and Israel.
The speaker told Fox News on Sunday that he and the former president are “100 percent aligned on these major agenda items.”
And Johnson’s alliance with Trump on the path forward for foreign aid could prevent Greene from removing the chairman for putting the Senate foreign aid package up for a vote.
“When you talk about aid to Ukraine, (Trump) introduced the loan-lease concept, which is very important and I think there’s a lot of consensus on it, as well as these other ideas – the REPO Act, which we’ve been discussing, that seizes the assets of corrupt Russian oligarchs to help pay for this resistance,” Johnson said.
“I think these are ideas that I think can build consensus, and that’s what we’ve been working on.”
“We’ll send our package in, we’ll put something together and send it to the Senate and make sure these obligations are met,” the speaker said Sunday.
Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile defense batteries were activated on Saturday to shoot down the incoming Iranian projectiles.
But when the House will be ready to move forward with foreign aid is still up in the air.
The House of Representatives is expected to reconvene for votes on Monday evening, but foreign aid is not on the agenda as of Monday morning. Although it is expected to be added sometime this week.
And some members want the foreign aid deal passed before Tuesday.
Nearly a hundred MPs sent one letter for Johnson to get started on the Senate’s $95 billion foreign aid package, arguing that if he does so, the legislation could be passed within 24 hours.
“This weekend, the Iranian regime launched hundreds of drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles directly against our most important democratic ally in the Middle East, Israel,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Time is of the essence, and we must ensure that crucial assistance is provided to Israel and our other democratic allies who face threats from our adversaries around the world.”
“We urge you to bring the Senate additional relief package to the table and vote on it immediately when we return on Monday.”
“This relief package passed the Senate by 70 votes, both Democrats and Republicans, and we can send it to the president’s desk for signature Monday evening.”
Israeli anti-missile systems shoot down incoming Iranian missiles and drones on Saturday
The bipartisan letter was led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C. It was also signed by ninety other members of the House of Representatives, mostly from the Democratic caucus.
The top appropriator in the House of Representatives, Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., has indicated a desire among House Republicans to get Israel’s funding up and running quickly.
It is still unclear when and how the House will release additional money for Israel and Ukraine.