“We can make that outcome less likely by replenishing Israel’s air defenses and providing military aid now, so its defenses can remain fully stocked and ready.” President Joe Biden wrote that in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday, a few days after Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel.
Iran said the Sunday attack answered an Israeli bombing of its consulate in Damascus earlier in the month, which killed people. Biden used the moment to press Congress to pass stalled legislation with billions in military and other aid for Israel. “If Iran succeeds in significantly escalating its assault on Israel, the US could be drawn in,” he wrote.
“Israel is our strongest partner in the Middle East,” Biden added. “It’s unthinkable that we would stand by if its defenses were weakened and Iran was able to carry out the destruction it intended this weekend.”
A bill stuck in the House
The measure is a $95bn package that would provide an additional $14bn in assistance to Israel, plus billions more for allies such as Ukraine and Taiwan. The Senate passed it in February. House Speaker Mike Johnson has blocked it there, bowing to pressure from hardline conservatives in his own party.
Some Republicans say the bill does too little about immigration at the southern border. Others object to US funding for Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion, which began more than two years ago and shows no sign of ending.
Since the Iranian attack, Johnson has faced mounting pressure on Capitol Hill to bring the package to a vote. “Time is of the essence, and we must ensure critical aid is delivered to Israel and our other democratic allies facing threats from our adversaries around the world,” dozens of lawmakers wrote to him in a letter earlier in the week.
Johnson answered in a letter to House members on Wednesday. Text for three bills covering Ukraine, Israel and the Asia Pacific would be filed “soon today,” he said, with a fourth bill of “other measures to confront Russia, China and Iran” to follow later that day. “We expect the vote on final passage on these bills to be on Saturday evening,” he wrote. Whether they will draw enough votes is unclear.
Democrats complicate the picture. Most have rejected splitting the foreign aid bill by country, fearing Republicans would pass the Israel portion and stall help for Ukraine. After the Iranian attack, it is unclear whether Democrats, who control the Senate, would accept an Israel-only bill.
Biden and Austin press the case
Biden wrote that Israel and Ukraine can both defend themselves, but “they depend on American assistance, including weaponry, to do it.” He said the package “shouldn’t be held hostage any longer by a small group of extreme Republican House members.”
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made the same argument in a briefing for lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Wednesday morning. “The most important thing that we can do right now is to pass the supplemental,” he said. That would let the US keep giving Israel security assistance, including air defence interceptors and munitions.
Gaza and bipartisan backing
Pressure on Israel’s supporters has grown at the same time. Top Israeli officials have said they intend to hit back at Iran, despite calls from the Biden administration and other Western nations to avoid escalation. The international community has stepped up appeals to the US and its allies to tie financial support for Israel to a bigger flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza. More than 33,800 Palestinians have died since Israel began its siege and blockade of the strip in early October, and UN officials have warned it is close to famine.
Criticism of the administration’s stance is rising. Even so, Israel, which receives $3.8bn in US aid annually, still enjoys strong bipartisan support among legislators in Washington.
