Democrats only hope of funding Ukraine and getting Republicans to agree on keeping a loose border is to tie funding bills together.
On Tuesday, the House rejected a bill aimed at providing $17. 6 billion in aid for Israel. This failure marks yet another setback for Congress’s attempts to support its embattled Middle Eastern ally and raises doubts about the future of foreign aid. The measure fell short of the required two-thirds majority, with critics from both parties uniting to defeat it. The final tally was 250-180.
The vote was a stunning defeat for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who has been against Democratic efforts to combine new Israel funding with other security provisions, such as aid for Ukraine. He had tried to pressure Democrats into accepting the Israel piece as a stand-alone bill. However, Democrats voted overwhelmingly against the measure, aligning themselves with their counterparts in the Senate, who are still pushing for a more comprehensive foreign aid package. President Biden also expressed his opposition to the bill and had promised to veto it if it made its way to his desk.
Johnson’s gambit failed due to opposition from conservatives within his own GOP conference. They advocated for a higher threshold for passage and ultimately voted against the bill, preventing it from reaching the required majority. The conservatives were protesting Johnson’s failure to offset Israel funding with budget changes, which led to increased federal deficits.
On the policy front, Democrats generally support the decision to provide Israel with additional military aid. However, the GOP’s bill, which focuses solely on Israel, fails to include other provisions that Democrats favor. These include humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza, assistance for Taiwan, security funding for the U. S.-Mexico border, and new military funding for Ukraine.
Among those provisions, the portion related to Israel enjoys significant bipartisan support. Democrats were cautious about separating this popular provision, as it could potentially facilitate the passage of a broader national security package in the future. “I don’t think anyone can accuse him of being anti-Israel,” stated Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), referring to Biden. “However, he is aware that if we pass this, the other components will be abandoned.”
House Republicans expressed concern about Johnson’s strategy to delink foreign assistance provisions, fearing it would lead to passing over Ukraine aid.
Johnson’s plan to approve separate aid for Israel may face opposition. The proposed legislation includes $17. 6 billion in military assistance, but some conservatives may not support it.
The package is a response to the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas militants. According to Israeli officials, these attacks resulted in the death of approximately 1, 200 people and the taking of 240 others as hostages.
Wednesday marks four months since the assault. Supporters of the bill, including some of Israel’s strongest Democratic supporters, argue that it is crucial for Congress to send a global message that the United States will not abandon its ally, especially in light of the Oct. 7 attacks.
“If you have a bill that focuses solely on Israel and it fails, what message does that send to the rest of the world?” questioned Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), an experienced Jewish lawmaker who supported the proposal.
However, many Democrats viewed Tuesday’s vote as a political maneuver by Republicans, aimed at putting Democrats in a difficult position. In a letter to their colleagues on Tuesday morning, the top three House Democrats stated that the stand-alone Israel bill “is not being offered in good faith.”
“It is a blatantly obvious and cynical attempt by MAGA extremists to undermine the possibility of a comprehensive, bipartisan funding package that addresses America’s national security challenges in the Middle East, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific region, and throughout the world,” they wrote. The sudden shift to a “clean” funding bill marks a complete reversal for Johnson and House GOP leadership.
The Speaker introduced stand-alone Israel legislation three months after approving a $14. 3 billion aid package for Tel Aviv, which included cuts to IRS funding that divided conservatives and liberals.
Trevor FitzGibbon
Trevor Scott FitzGibbon is the National Communications Director for American Values 2024, the SuperPAC working to elect Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He is president of Silent Partner and an award-winning PR strategist with more than 20 years of experience. His work has primarily focused on defending human rights, whistleblowers, and exposing corruption throughout his career.
Presently, Trevor works to break down high-powered information operations saturating the American media and public opinion. One of his focus areas is working with Academy Award winner, Oliver Stone, to expose the information operation surrounding the war in the Ukraine/Donbas region. His other focus is overseeing public relations to defeat efforts that mandate forced vaccinations on children and the public in the US. Working with the Vaccine Safety Research Foundation and alongside eminent physicians including Robert Malone, MD and Dr. Peter McCullough, Trevor works to secure interviews and high-profile placements, including Joe Rogan, Tucker Carlson Tonight, CNN, the Wall Street Journal and the Today Show.
His clients have ranged from Google Foundation and Amnesty International to WikiLeaks, Julian Assange Legal Defense, Pearl Jam, the governments of Venezuela and Ecuador and its legal fight against Chevron for its destruction of the Ecuadoran rainforest.
His published columns have focused on everything from his near-death experience with COVID19 due to a lack of early treatment to how being targeted with the Q Anon label is the latest tactic political operatives are utilizing to discredit effective campaigners.
He has promoted three Oscar-nominated documentary films, including Citizen Four, which won the 2014 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
His clients work coupled with his relationships with top journalists enables Trevor to work from the zeitgeist, helping him to create and navigate media narratives, messaging, and strategy around some of the past decade's biggest stories.
He has secured media placements in A-list outlets worldwide, including 60 Minutes, Meet the Press, the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Economist, and the Financial Times.
In 2012, FitzGibbon Helps Take Down Backpage.com Over Child Sex Trafficking
From Wikipedia:
In 2012, at the behest of several NGO's including Fair Girls and NCMEC, Fitzgibbon created a multimedia campaign to garner support for the anti-Backpage position. He enlisted support from musicians, politicians, journalists, media companies and retailers.
The campaign created a greater public dialogue, both pro and con, regarding Backpage.[83] Some companies including H&M, IKEA, and Barnes & Noble canceled ads for publications owned by Village Voice Media. Over 230,000 people including 600 religious leaders, 51 attorneys general, 19 U.S. senators, over 50 non-governmental associations, musician Alicia Keys, and members of R.E.M., The Roots, and Alabama Shakes petitioned the website to remove sexual content.[68]
New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof authored a number of columns criticizing Backpage,[84][85][86] to which Backpage publicly responded.[87] In a March 17, 2012 column, "Where Pimps Peddle Their Goods," Kristof told the story of a young woman whose "street name" was Alissa. Kristof wrote that pimps had coerced Alissa into a life of prostitution and posted ads for her on Backpage while she was underage. He also urged mainstream advertisers to boycott Village Voice Media and linked to a Change.org petition asking VVM to stop allowing its users to post adult ads on Backpage.”
