President Joe Biden would veto a bill backed by House Republicans that would give aid to Israel, the White House said Monday, as his administration instead supports a broader package that would also provide more help to Ukraine and boost funds for border security.
“The Administration spent months working with a bipartisan group of Senators to reach a national security agreement that secures the border and provides support for the people of Ukraine and Israel, while also providing much-needed humanitarian assistance to civilians affected by conflicts around the world,” the White House Office of Management and Budget said in a statement. “Instead of working in good faith to address the most pressing national security challenges, this bill is another cynical political maneuver.”
The bill would give $17.6 billion in aid to Israel alone, as opposed to the $118 billion bipartisan Senate package unveiled over the weekend which would give $14.1 billion to Israel, around $20 billion for enforcement work on the U.S.-Mexico border, and $60 billion to Ukraine. House Republicans have vehemently opposed the Senate bill, vowing to reject it and instead vote only on legislation offering aid to Israel.
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“The president’s veto threat is an act of betrayal,” GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement. “In threatening to veto aid to Israel and to our military forces, President Biden is abandoning our ally in its time of greatest need.”
“The security of Israel should be sacred, not a political game,” the White House statement continued, encouraging Congress to pass the wider Senate bill. “The Administration strongly opposes this ploy which does nothing to secure the border, does nothing to help the people of Ukraine defend themselves against Putin’s aggression, fails to support the security of American synagogues, mosques, and vulnerable places of worship, and denies humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom are women and children.”
