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File photo: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) delivers a statement to reporters in Washington, DC, on February 27, 2024. Photo by Leah Millis/Reuters
WASHINGTON (AP) – House Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday announced a push for wartime aid to Israel this week as he tackles the difficult task of winning House approval of a national security package that also includes funding for Ukraine and allies in Asia. He said he would strive to
read more: Ukraine will struggle to repel Russian advance without US help, military analyst warns
Johnson, R-Louisiana, is already facing tremendous political pressure from his fellow Republicans as he tries to navigate divided Republican support to help protect Kiev from Moscow’s invasion. is recieving. In addition to aid to U.S. allies, the Republican chairman announced an additional $95 billion package aimed at providing humanitarian aid to civilians in Ukraine and Gaza and funding to replenish U.S. weapons provided to Taiwan in two months. We’ve been discussing it for a while.
Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel early on Sunday added to the pressure on Mr Johnson, but also gave him an opportunity to stress the urgency of approving the funds.
Johnson told Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures” that he and the Republican Party “understand the need to work with Israel” and would try to push for aid this week.
“The details of that package are currently being finalized,” he said. “We’re looking at options and all of these complementary issues.”
Republican Rep. Mike Turner (Ohio), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Prime Minister Johnson has announced that Israel, Ukraine and Asian allies will join the Republican conference. He said he had “made it clear” that he was considering ways to provide funding to do so. This week’s house floor.
He expressed support for legislation that would structure some of the funding for Kyiv as a loan, paving the way for the United States to tap into frozen Russian central bank assets and include other policy changes. Mr. Johnson has called on the Biden administration to lift a moratorium on liquefied natural gas export approvals and has at times called for policy changes at the U.S.-Mexico border.
But right now, the only policy with broad bipartisan support in Congress is a Senate-passed bill that includes about $60 billion for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby called on the speaker to get the package “on the floor as soon as possible.”
“We didn’t need any reminders about what was going on in Ukraine,” Kirby said on NBC. “But last night’s events certainly brought into sharp relief the threat that Israel faces in a very tough neighborhood.”
clock: House Speaker Johnson faces legislative dilemma as he struggles to keep office in divided Republican Party
Johnson is consulting with both the White House and Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump, as he looks for ways to advance funding to Ukraine.
With his job at risk, Mr. Johnson traveled to Florida on Friday to attend an event with Mr. Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club. President Trump expressed support for Johnson, saying he has a “very good relationship” with him.
“He and I are 100 percent aligned on these big issues,” Johnson said. “When we talk about aid to Ukraine, he introduced the concept of loans and leases, which I think is very important and there is a lot of consensus.”
But with his “America First” slogan, President Trump encouraged many Republicans to pursue an isolationist stance. Support for Ukraine has steadily declined in the nearly two years since the war began, making the once-widely supported cause one of Johnson’s most difficult issues.
When he returns to Washington on Monday, Prime Minister Johnson will also confront a group of conservatives already angered by his leadership in the House of Representatives, which has pushed to maintain the status quo on both government spending and, more recently, U.S. government surveillance tools. That’s going to happen.
Right-wing Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called for Johnson’s ouster. As she left the Capitol on Friday, she told reporters that support for her own efforts is growing.
read more: Marjorie Taylor Greene makes new threat to remove House Speaker Johnson in scathing letter
No other Republicans have publicly joined Greene, but a growing number of hardline conservatives openly despise Johnson and rebel against his leadership.
Meanwhile, Republican leaders who support aid to Ukraine have grown frustrated with the months-long wait for consideration in the House. The Kiev army is running low on ammunition, and Russia is emboldened to gain the upper hand in the spring-summer offensive. Last week, a major missile and drone attack destroyed one of Ukraine’s largest power plants and damaged others.
“Russia is starting to expand its power, and Ukraine is starting to lose its ability to defend itself,” Turner said. “The United States must provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs and further strengthen it.”
The divided power balance has forced Johnson to try to piece together policies that provide policy advantages for Republicans while maintaining support from Democrats. But Democrats have repeatedly urged the speaker to consider the $95 billion bill passed by the Senate in February.
Progressive Democrats have resisted aid out of concern that aid to Israel would support the invasion of Gaza that killed thousands of civilians, but most House Democrats have balked at supporting the Senate’s policy.
“The reason this Senate bill is the only one is because of the urgency,” Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said last week. “We will pass the Senate bill, it will go straight to the president’s desk, and aid will begin immediately to Ukraine. That is the only option.”
Many Democrats have also indicated they are likely to help block efforts to remove Johnson from the speakership if the Senate bill passes.
“If we can get Israel, Taiwan, Ukraine and reasonable border security, I’m the one who would save him,” said Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas.
Associated Press writer Kevin Freeking contributed.
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