Tipsheet

'Doesn't Add Up': Israel Aid Bill Includes $9 Billion for Gaza 'Assistance'

Spencer Brown
Spencer Brown  |  April 18, 2024 2:30 PM

"Something doesn't add up," U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) posted on X this week as House leadership seeks to move forward with a series of supplemental security funding bills to provide new taxpayer-funded aid to Israel and Ukraine, along with other policies aimed at strengthening U.S. security. 

Grabbing Clyde's attention: provisions of the bill providing aid to Israel and the amounts of funding listed on a summary sheet from the House Appropriations Committee of which Clyde is a member. 

"This section totals $26.38 billion to support Israel in its effort to defend itself against Iran and its proxies, and to reimburse U.S. military operations in response to recent attacks," the document shared by Clyde states before listing out the specific uses for that money:

  • $4 billion to replenish Iron Dome and David's Sling missile defense systems.
  • $1.2 billion for the Iron Beam defense system to counter short-range rockets and mortar threats.
  • $3.5 billion for the procurement of advanced weapons systems, defense articles, and defense services through the Foreign Military Financing Program.
  • $1 billion to enhance the production and development of artillery and critical munitions.
  • $4.4 billion to replenish defense articles and defense services provided to Israel.
  • $2.4 billion for current U.S. military operations in the region in response to recent attacks.
  • Provides additional flexibility for transfers of defense articles to Israel from U.S. stockpiles held abroad.
  • Prohibits funds to the United Nationals Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

All that is well and good — the U.S. should ensure Israel remains armed to the teeth against its enemies and continue to stand beside our ally as it fights to restore its security. But it's not the full story. 

Adding up the funds enumerated by the Appropriations Committee gives you $16.5 billion — not the total $26.38 billion. In fact, it's more than $9 billion short of that full amount. As Clyde noted, it "doesn't add up." He found most of the missing billions on page eleven of the legislation.

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There, the bill allocates $5,655,000,000 for "International Disaster Assistance" to "address humanitarian needs, including the provision of emergency food and shelter, of vulnerable populations and communities" along with $3,495,000,000 for "Migration and Refugee Assistance" to "address humanitarian needs of vulnerable populations and communities."

Add up those two items and you get $9,150,000,000 worth of taxpayer dollars going to "vulnerable populations." And who might those be?

According to Clyde, "GOP leadership wants to hide the fact that the Israel aid bill allocates +$9 billion in humanitarian aid to Gaza."

As was known to happen before — and has been repeatedly confirmed throughout the six months following Iran-backed Hamas terrorists' October 7 attack on Israel — aid delivered to Gaza is diverted by force to Hamas terrorists. That's why the rockets launched by terrorists in Gaza at innocent Israelis are made from sewer pipes and street signs. There are too many examples to count, but enough have been caught on camera to confirm that aid to Gaza is just aid to Hamas.

Civilians in Gaza who attempt to get their hands on the aid that's meant for them are violently repelled by Hamas terrorists who leap aboard aid vehicles, shoot at the Gazans trying to get the humanitarian supplies, and take the loot for themselves. 

For those still not convinced that the money would end up helping the barbaric terrorists who sparked the war, President Joe Biden's statement from Wednesday should clear things up (emphasis added):

I strongly support this package to get critical support to Israel and Ukraine, provide desperately needed humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, and bolster security and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

As Biden's comment indicates, providing aid for Gaza is one of the necessities to get Democrat votes on the bill to overcome opposition among the discontented in the House Republican conference who oppose various portions of the funding package. House Republican leaders hope to get the suite of supplemental security bills — including this legislation dealing with Israel, $60 billion for Ukraine, and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific — passed before the end of the weekend.