The House is scheduled to vote Thursday on a bill that would block President Biden’s efforts to block offensive weapons aid to Israel.
Mr. Biden said he had put a hold on a shipment of bombs from Israel over concerns that they might be used in Rafah, and that the U.S. would send offensive weapons if they were used in the heavily populated southern Gaza Strip. He faces bipartisan backlash for warning Israel that there is no such thing.
The Israel Security Assistance and Assistance Act condemns the president’s stance on Israel’s invasion of Gaza and forces the Biden administration to quickly send arms shipments already approved by Congress.
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House Speaker Mike Johnson (left) on Thursday pressed Democrats on pro-Israel legislation, but his Democratic counterpart, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, opposes it. (Getty Images)
It also says it will withhold funding from the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State, and National Security Council if arms aid is delayed.
Democratic leaders in the House and White House actively oppose the bill, but it is expected to have at least a few supporters on the left.
A House Democratic aide told Fox News Digital that he expects about 10 left-leaning members to join Republicans in supporting the bill.
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Biden faces bipartisan backlash from pro-Israel lawmakers for withholding offensive aid. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
A second House Democratic aide noted that the White House “strongly opposes” the bill, saying the number is less than 20.
At least two Democrats, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D.Y.) and Rep. Greg Landsman (D., Ohio), told Axios They are voting in favor of the bill.
The Israel issue has proven to be a powerful political cudgel for Republicans, as Democrats wrestle with a chorus of voices increasingly critical of America’s traditional unconditional support for Israel.
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Representative Richie Torres, a Democrat from New York, is expected to oppose his party on the Israel bill. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“We know this is a politically bogus bill,” House Minority Leader Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) said Wednesday morning. That’s what I’m aiming for.” [the Pentagon], Department of State, NSC in this time of global conflict. That’s embarrassing. ”
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The White House criticized the bill as a “misguided response to a deliberate distortion of the administration’s approach toward Israel” with a veto threat.
The vote reportedly came days after Biden announced he would move forward with a $1 billion arms shipment to Israel.
