The House passed a bill on May 16 that would prohibit the Biden administration from withholding military assistance or services from Israel.
The Israel Security Assistance Support Act, introduced by Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.), passed in a 224–187 vote, with 208 Republicans and 16 Democrats voting in favor and 184 Democrats and three Republicans voting against it.
The move comes after the administration put a hold on a shipment of bombs and munitions to the Jewish state over Washington’s concerns about a full-scale Israeli operation in the Gazan city of Rafah.
The bill would require any withholding of U.S. defense assistance and services for Israel to be resumed within 15 days of enactment. Otherwise, Congress would hold back funding for the National Security Council and the offices of the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of State until those defense articles or services are delivered.
The White House and House Democrat leadership are against the bill.
“The legislation would constitute an unprecedented limitation on President Biden’s executive authority and administrative discretion to implement U.S. foreign policy,” said House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) in a message to House Democrats, urging them to vote against the bill.
The measure would require the State Department and Defense Department to allocate all funding for Israel within 30 days of the bill’s enactment.
The bill would apply to U.S. security assistance for Israel passed during and before the 2024 fiscal year, prohibiting the administration from withholding, canceling, halting, or reversing U.S. military aid or services to Israel.
It would also block the funding of the salaries of State Department and Defense Department employees who take such action.
The White House said in a statement that the bill would “undermine the president’s ability to execute an effective foreign policy.”
In a May 14 statement, the administration said that the bill would go against the president’s authority as commander-in-chief in accordance with Article II of the Constitution that also includes conducting foreign policy.
“The bill is a misguided reaction to a deliberate distortion of the administration’s approach to Israel,” said the White House.
“This bill, if enacted, could lead to spiraling unintended consequences, prohibiting the United States from adjusting our security assistance posture with respect to Israel in any way, including to address unanticipated emergent needs, even if Israel and the United States agree that military needs have changed and supplies should change accordingly,” it added.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) fired back at the White House over its veto threat.
“It wasn’t that long ago when President Biden called for the Elimination of Violence. He’s not doing that anymore,” he said, adding that he has “turned [his] back on Israel” and is “carrying water for Iran,” which backs the Hamas terrorist group, which launched the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.) told The Epoch Times that the hold “is crazy” and an example of the United States treating its allies “shabbily.”
House Democrats have expressed mixed feelings about the bill.
Just hours ahead of the vote, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) called the bill unserious.
“It is not a serious effort at legislating, which is why some of the most pro-Israel members of the House Democratic Caucus will be voting no,” he said at his weekly press conference.
“Despite this long record of support for Israel, House Republicans yet again intend to use Israel as a political cudgel, which weakens Israel and undermines Israel’s leverage in this conflict—continuing a despicable and shameful pattern of using Israel and Jews as political pawns,” said Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) in a statement.
“If Speaker Johnson moves ahead with a vote on another false, meaningless and misguided bill, once again choosing to undermine the bipartisan nature of support for Israel, I will vote no,” he added.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) told The Epoch Times that Republicans are using the war between Israel and Hamas “more so as a pawn instead of being serious about foreign affairs.”
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) told The Epoch Times that he is “not going to be complicit in what’s happening in terms of humanitarian suffering” in Gaza and that the Biden administration was right to place the hold on bombs and munitions for Israel.
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) told The Epoch Times that the administration is justified in placing the hold because were Israel to invade Rafah, “there’ll be mass slaughter and it’s unnecessary and stupid, frankly, to do so.”
The bill is dead on arrival in the Senate anyway, as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) noted the White House’s opposition to the measure.
“If Schumer refuses to bring this up for a vote, he’ll be telling the world that his party, the Democrats, are no longer willing to stand with our great allies,” said Mr. Johnson on May 16.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) predicted that public pressure will force Mr. Schumer to put the bill on the Senate floor. To not do so, said Mr. Scalise, would be to “[side] with Hamas.”
In an interview on CNN last week, President Joe Biden said his administration would continue to provide defense weapons to Israel, but it would not give Israel the military assistance it needs to carry out a full-scale invasion of Rafah.
From The Epoch Times