Yesterday at 16:33
House Speaker Mike Johnson finally introduced his proposal on aid for the US allies, adding a bill on national security.
He announced this on X on April 15.
“This week, we will consider separate bills with a structured and germane amendment process to:
-fund our ally Israel;
-support Ukraine in its war against Russian aggression;
-strengthen our allies in the Indo-Pacific;
-pass additional measures to counter our adversaries and strengthen our national security,” Johnson described the GOP plan after he held a meeting with the House Republicans.
The bill on national security aims at banning TikTok, confiscating frozen Russian assets, and implementing a land-lease act on military aid. However, it doesn’t mention US-Mexico border security issues which previously stood in the way of the aid for Ukraine.
Some Republicans believe the aid for Ukraine should be discussed only if the flow of migrants from Mexico is stopped, so they may not vote for a bill solely focused on Ukraine, returning to that argument.
The White House has already reacted negatively to Johnson’s proposal for that very reason.
“We would oppose a standalone bill that would just work on Israel, as we’ve seen proposed,” stated John Kirby during a White House briefing on April 15.
“A standalone would actually not help Israel and Ukraine. It would actually delay […] the needed aid,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre added and stressed that a Senate $95 million aid package should be voted instead.
Read also: US approached “consensus” on aid to Ukraine and Israel — Chuck Schumer
