House approves Ukraine, Israel aid: Recap

It all comes down to this.

After months of fighting between the parties, across the chambers and within the House Republican conference, the lower chamber is poised Saturday to approve a massive new round of foreign aid, combining billions of dollars in military help for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with billions more in humanitarian assistance for Gaza and other war zones around the globe.

Passage would mark a huge victory for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who had rejected a Senate-passed foreign-aid package in February and has agonized since then over how to move the more conservative version he promised through the House in the face of fierce opposition from hardliners occupying his animated right flank.

The legislation he’s proposed attempts to thread a delicate needle, keeping much of the Senate proposal intact — in order to secure crucial Democratic support — while adding a series of Republican national security priorities designed to temper the conservative outcry. Those GOP provisions, combined into their own package, include new sanctions on Iran; efforts to reduce the impact of the aid package on deficit spending; and a potential ban on TikTok amid concerns over the blockbuster company’s ties to China’s Communist Party.

To sweeten the deal further, Johnson has split the package into four distinct pieces, each scheduled to receive a separate vote — a design that’s won praise from lawmakers in both parties who have supported parts of the Senate bill but not others. Johnson’s piecemeal approach grants them the opportunity to go on record supporting their favored aid provisions while rejecting those they oppose.

Still, the Speaker’s decision to champion new foreign aid has come with stark political risks, infuriating conservatives who were already up in arms over his willingness to cut deals with President Biden on big-ticket legislation like extending federal funding and reauthorizing government surveillance powers.

House advances Ukraine, Israel aid as Dems help Speaker Johnson, GOP

The debate has not sparked a direct challenge to Johnson’s gavel. But Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) last month had introduced a resolution to remove him from power — a motion since endorsed by two other GOP lawmakers — and it remains unclear if passage of the Ukraine aid will prompt her to force the measure to the floor for a vote.

The House gavels in at 9 a.m. to begin what is sure to be a fiery floor debate, with voting expected to begin at around 1 p.m. On the schedule are a series of amendments, that will each receive a separate vote; the border bill, which is not expected to win the two-thirds majority needed to pass by the procedural vehicle under which it’s moving; and finally the four foreign aid bills: Israel, Indo-Pacific, Ukraine and the grab-all package of national security bills.

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