U.S. House approves aid for Israel, but White House says it won’t become law

The bill approved by House Republicans seeks to offset the US$14.3 billion in aid with government spending cuts, which has drawn condemnation from Democrats.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would send US$14.3 billion in emergency aid to Israel on a near party-line vote Thursday, but the White House has made clear the bill has no chance of becoming law.

Getting military aid to Israel as it responds to last month’s brutal attack by Hamas has become a political football despite broad bipartisan support for the U.S. ally. The bill introduced by House Republicans this week seeks to offset the aid with government spending cuts — a move not typically made with emergency funding requests — while also ignoring U.S. President Joe Biden’s request to link the aid with funding for Ukraine and other national security priorities.

After days of hinting that U.S. President Joe Biden would not sign a bill solely focused on Israel, the White House made that explicit on Thursday.

“The president would veto an Israel-only bill. I think we’ve made that clear,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters at a briefing.

The bill passed on Thursday may not even make it that far. Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has warned that the “stunningly unserious” bill has no chances in the Senate.

“Let me be clear: The Senate will not take up the House GOP’s deeply flawed proposal,” Schumer wrote on social media before the House vote.

He added the Senate intends to take up Biden’s original request for a nearly US$106-billion package that includes money for Israel, Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific and U.S.-Mexico border security.