A dozen House Democrats broke party lines on Thursday to vote for a stand-alone bill that provides emergency military assistance to Israel.
The bill, which House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) unveiled earlier this week, provides $14.3 billion in military aid to our No. 1 ally in the Middle East. The bill attempts to offset the cost of the aid by reappropriating funds given to the IRS in the Inflation Reduction Act. The Congressional Budget Office, however, said the bill would add to the deficit over the next decade based on estimated revenue losses the IRS claims it would suffer because of budgetary loss.
Before and after the vote, Democrats accused Republicans of playing political games for not including more military assistance for Ukraine and for tinkering with the Inflation Reduction Act.
Ultimately, 12 Democrats chose to stand with Israel:
- Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.)
- Rep. Don Davis (D-N.C.)
- Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.)
- Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine)
- Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.)
- Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio)
- Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.)
- Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.)
- Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.)
- Rep. Juan Vargas (D-Calif.)
- Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.)
- Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.)
On the other hand, two Republicans — Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) — voted against the bill. Massie said the U.S. cannot afford more foreign aid, while Greene said Congress should prioritize the border crisis.
Unfortunately, the bill is dead on arrival in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Thursday he will not allow the bipartisan legislation to see a vote in the Senate because he wants to force taxpayers to give more money to Ukraine, among other demands.
“The Senate will not take up the House GOP’s deeply flawed proposal,” Schumer said. “Instead we will work together on our own bipartisan emergency aid package that includes aid to Israel, Ukraine, competition with the Chinese government, and humanitarian aid for Gaza.”
Even if the bill magically cleared the Senate, President Joe Biden would veto it.
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