Israel has increasingly been a problem for President Joe Biden following the October 7 terrorist attack that Hamas perpetrated against our ally in the Middle East. We were reminded of that again on Monday, when the White House again threatened Biden would veto a standalone bill that provided aid to Israel. The president issued such a threat last year, too. The Republican-controlled House had passed a bill offset by rescinding the IRS expansion, though it failed multiple times in the Senate.
On Sunday night, the text for the border bill was revealed. It's been considered "dead on arrival" in the House, as Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and others in House leadership reiterated multiple times on Monday. There's aid for Israel in the bill, to the tune of $14 billion. Even before the bill's text was released, Johnson came out strongly opposed. He also had announced on Saturday that the House would vote on a $17.6 billion clean bill for Israel.
The Hill had more on the veto threat:
The Office of Management and Budget took aim at the $17.6 billion Israel bill that is set for a vote in the House this week, while the Senate is teeing up a vote on a bipartisan bill that includes funding for Israel, Ukraine and border security.
“The Administration spent months working with a bipartisan group of Senators to reach a national security agreement that secures the border and provides support for the people of Ukraine and Israel, while also providing much-needed humanitarian assistance to civilians affected by conflicts around the world,” the White House said in a “Statement of Administration Policy.”
“Instead of working in good faith to address the most pressing national security challenges, this bill is another cynical political maneuver,” the statement continued.
“The security of Israel should be sacred, not a political game. The Administration strongly opposes this ploy which does nothing to secure the border, does nothing to help the people of Ukraine defend themselves against [Russian President Vladimir Putin’s] aggression, fails to support the security of American synagogues, mosques, and vulnerable places of worship, and denies humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom are women and children.”
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There's plenty to unpack there with such a loaded statement. This is the Biden administration we're talking about here, but it is still pretty bad. It's this White House that makes aid to Israel "a political game" and a "cynical political maneuver." It has been doing so by insisting that such aid be tied with aid to Ukraine, something Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) has been particularly key in highlighting how it's such a ridiculous move.
House Republicans already passed a particularly strong border bill, HR 2 Secure the Border Act. Further, Biden has the authority to secure the border himself, he just claims otherwise and refuses to do so, hiding behind a bad deal such as this one.
Further, with such a talking point about "humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians," the White House is ignorant on another matter. Sure enough, such aid has been hijacked by Hamas terrorists.
Johnson responded to such a threat when he spoke to reporters on Monday night, calling it "a betrayal of our great ally and friend Israel in their time of desperate need." He reminded that "Israel’s at war, they’re fighting for their very existence, and the idea that Joe Biden would suggest that he would not send a clean funding measure to assist them is just outrageous. I think he’s gonna hear quite a bit about that veto threat."
Even with Republicans in control, though, such an aid package might not pass the chamber. The House Freedom Caucus came out with a statement on Sunday that called the idea of a standalone bill "extremely disappointing."
"Congress can pay for Israel aid by cutting funding for the United Nations, repealing the IRS expansion, rescinding the Department of Commerce 'slush fund,' or ending leftist climate change tax credits," the statement read in part.
Today, the Board of the House Freedom Caucus released the following statement in regards to the standalone Israel funding bill that was released this weekend. pic.twitter.com/fAjXOdrRfy
— House Freedom Caucus (@freedomcaucus) February 4, 2024
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