Washington (Reuters) – The White House on Friday asked Congress for nearly $106 billion to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and U.S. border security, but offered no strategy for securing the money from a broken Congress.
President Joe Biden’s request for the funding comes days after he visited Israel and pledged solidarity as the country bombards Gaza following an attack by Hamas militants that killed 1,400 people in southern Israel.
By grouping Israel funding with Ukraine, border security, refugee assistance, measures to counter China and other hotly debated priorities, the Democratic president is hoping he has created a must-pass national security spending bill that can win support in a chaotic House of Representatives.
The chamber, which Republicans won control of last year, has been without a leader for 18 days.
Some Republican lawmakers have grown skeptical of the need to fund Ukraine’s war with Russia, and have threatened to halt government altogether to put an end to chronic U.S. budget deficits and fiscal spending fueled by $31.4 trillion in debt.
“The world is watching and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities,” said Biden’s budget director, Shalanda Young, in a letter to acting House Speaker Patrick McHenry. “I urge Congress to address them as part of a comprehensive, bipartisan agreement in the weeks ahead.”
In a call with reporters, Young said the role of the White House is to lay out the country’s needs and the stakes, not to meddle in the speakership battle.
“We are doing our job here by letting Congress know what the critical needs are and we expect them to act, and act swiftly,” she said.
She also told Congress of plans to submit another request for funding to deal with natural disasters, high-speed internet, child care and wild-land firefighter pay “in coming days.”
Some $14.3 billion of Friday’s funding request for the 2024 fiscal year would be dedicated to Israel, much of it to support the country’s air and missile defense systems and other weapons purchases. Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas, which rules Gaza, after the Islamist militant group’s Oct. 7 attack.
Hardline conservative Jim Jordan, an ally of Republican former President Donald Trump who objects to further aid to Ukraine, invoked Israel ahead of his third bid to get enough votes for the House leadership position.
“The sooner we can get this accomplished, the better for the American people, who expect us to work for them, and for our friends and allies like the great state of Israel,” Jordan said. He appeared poised to lose the speakership vote again on Friday.
Biden also wants more than $9 billion for humanitarian relief, including for Israel and Gaza, where the population faces a worsening humanitarian crisis.
The proposal also includes $13.6 billion for U.S. border security to deal with large numbers of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants at the southern border as well as fentanyl trade and $4 billion in military assistance and government financing designed to counter China’s regional efforts in Asia. Funding will also support the Pacific “AUKUS” security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
But the largest share of cash, $61.4 billion, would be for Ukraine. The request includes billions to replenish the country’s military equipment, and would provide economic and security aid and support for refugees in the United States. The war with Russia is 20 months old, and Biden has vowed to support Ukraine indefinitely.
“The unwavering bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States is incredibly encouraging for all of our warriors and for our entire nation,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on Friday on social media. “America’s investment in Ukraine’s defense will ensure long-term security for all of Europe and the world,” he said. Zelenskiy spoke with Biden on Thursday.
About four in 10 respondents in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last week said the U.S. should support Israel’s position in the current conflict when given a range of options. Nearly half said Americans should remain neutral or not be involved.
In a separate Reuters/Ipsos poll earlier this month, roughly the same proportion agreed with a statement that Washington “should provide weapons to Ukraine.”
“American leadership is what holds the world together. American alliances are what keep us, America, safe,” Biden said in an Oval Office address to the nation on Thursday night.
