JOHNSON PUSHES TOWARDS AID VOTE
Move by House Speaker may end months-long blockade on help for Ukraine in fight against Russia
US House Speaker Mike Johnson is pushing towards action this week on aid for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan, unveiling an elaborate plan to break the package into separate votes to squeeze through political divides on foreign policy.
Facing outright rebellion from conservatives fiercely opposed to aiding Ukraine, the Republican speaker’s move on the foreign aid package was a potentially watershed moment, the first significant action on the bill after more than two months of delay.
But Johnson’s intention to hold four separate votes on parts of the package also left it open to being significantly altered from the US$95 billion aid package the Senate passed in February.
It is unclear if the House of Representatives could end up with a package that is similar to the Senate’s bill or something significantly different, which could complicate the monthslong, painstaking effort to get Congress to approve military funding for Ukraine.
But as the House has struggled to act, global conflicts have escalated. Israel’s military chief said his country would respond to Iran’s weekend missile strike.
And Ukraine’s military head warned over the weekend that the battlefield situation in the country’s east had “significantly worsened in recent days”, as warming weather had allowed Russian forces to launch a fresh offensive.
“There are precipitating events around the globe that we’re all watching very carefully and we know the world is watching us to see how we react,” Johnson said.
US President Joe Biden, hosting Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala at the White House, called on the House to take up the Senate funding package immediately.
Democrats in the House could be open to helping Johnson pass the aid in parts, and may even be agreeable to some of the additional measures being discussed by Republicans, such as providing some of the Ukraine economic assistance as loans.
But Johnson would lose the Democratic support he needs if he strays too far into Republicanonly priorities. Any overhaul to the package also risks setbacks in the Senate, where a bulk of Republicans oppose the aid for Ukraine and Democrats have become increasingly alarmed at Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
As House members returned to the Capitol on Monday evening, Johnson huddled with fellow Republican lawmakers to lay out his strategy to gain House approval for the funding package. He said he would push to get the package to the House floor under a single debate rule that allows for separate votes on aid for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and other foreign policy proposals. Johnson said those proposals would structure some of the funding for Kyiv as loans, allow the US to seize frozen Russian central bank assets and place other sanctions on Iran.
The Republican meeting was filled with lawmakers at odds in their approach to the conflict with Russia: Republican defence hawks are pitted against populist conservatives fiercely opposed to continued support for Kyiv’s fight.
As often happens, the meeting turned into a free-for-all of ideas as Republicans tried to put their own stamp on the package but rarely found unity. Yet Johnson’s plan won significant Republican support, congressman Greg Steube said. “I don’t like it. But I’m clearly in the minority.”
Another unknown was how Donald Trump, the Republican presidential front runner who has railed against overseas aid, would respond to the proposal.
Democrats had pressured Johnson to simply take up the Senate-passed bill that would provide US$95 billion for the US allies, as well as humanitarian support for Gaza and Ukraine.
“The House must rush to Israel’s aid as quickly as humanly possible, and the only way to do that is passing the Senate’s supplemental ASAP,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said.