The House is pushing ahead Thursday toward passage of $14.5 billion in military aid for Israel, a muscular U.S. response to the war with Hamas but also a partisan approach by new Speaker Mike Johnson that poses a direct challenge to Democrats and President Joe Biden.
In a departure from norms, Johnson’s package is requiring that the emergency aid be offset with cuts in government spending elsewhere. That tack establishes the House GOP’s conservative leadership, but it also turns what would typically be a bipartisan vote into one dividing Democrats and Republicans. Biden has said he would veto the bill.
Johnson, R-La., said the Republican package would provide Israel with the assistance needed to defend itself, free hostages held by Hamas and eradicate the militant Palestinian group, accomplishing “all of this while we also work to ensure responsible spending and reduce the size of the federal government.”
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