The U.S. has spent more than $12 billion for foreign aid for Ukraine against Russia. As Washington, DC, prepares to invest in a second foreign conflict, inflation continues to weigh upon Americans at home. In September, prices jumped 3.7% compared to 2022.
Democrats' disfavor with Johnson's bill – which at almost $14.5 billion provides the dollars requested by President Joe Biden – isn't about inflation. They say it's a danger to national security. National Security Advisor John Kirby called the bill "deeply concerning."
"It doesn't meet our national security needs. The President's never going to anything that doesn't meet our key national security needs," he said.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer chimed in, describing the bill as "stunningly unserious."
Johnson, whose Christian worldview has been under attack from the Left since he assumed the House Speaker's role, made it clear that the time was right for aid for Israel in spite of economic conditions at home.
"In one of my first acts as Speaker, we passed a resolution reaffirming our commitment to Israel in its moment of peril," Johnson said at the time. "Now, as Israel begins the next phase of its war, it's been kind of disturbing to us. I've heard Democrats suggest that there needs to be a ceasefire. Let us be clear. We've been very clear about this. There was a ceasefire. It was before October 7, and Hamas broke it."
He added: "The Israelis suffered unspeakable acts of evil."
Inflation at home should take priority, some Republicans say
Spending has been the primary obstacle for some in Johnson's party. Inflation has decreased from its peak but not enough to float two wars overseas, some Republicans say. For example, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) said the bill's impact will be felt by the working class.
"If Congress sends $14.5 billion to Israel, on average we'll be taking about $100 from every working person in the United States," Massie wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "This will be extracted through inflation and taxes. I'm against it."
Massie's stance has created problems for him with Jewish groups. "Lobbyists for Israel are running hit pieces against me this week on TV," he wrote Sunday.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) also did not support the bill.
"We have had over 10 MILLION people illegally cross our border since Biden took office and we are over $33 TRILLION dollars in debt with many major problems afflicting Americans. The United States government needs to focus on spending American's hard-earned tax dollars on our own country and needs to serve the American people NOT the rest of the world," she wrote on X.
Greene voted in favor of House resolutions condemning attacks on both Ukraine and Israel.
Johnson's bill ties Israel funding to spending cuts for the Internal Revenue Service which received $80 billion as part of Biden's Inflation Reduction Act in 2022.
The funding is to be spread over 10 years and could eventually lead to the hiring of 87,000 new employees for an agency that in 2013 was found targeting conservative groups. Lois Lerner, the head of the IRS division tasked with oversight of tax-exempt groups, resigned for her role in the scandal.
An important part of Johnson's bill was to separate it from the request for additional aid for Ukraine. Biden presented to two requests together. Blaze TV show host and columnist Auron MacIntyre, during an interview American Family Radio Monday, expressed support for Johnson's approach.
"I agree that isolating the package is definitely an improvement in general, and of course, we should not be expanding the IRS at all. It is a weaponized agency directly pointed at conservatives, at Republicans, at opponents of the Biden administration," MacIntyre stated. "We should just be stripping as much funding in general from [the IRS] as possible."
But despite what he describes as "positive aspects" of the Israel aid bill, MacIntyre opposes sending money to Israel, Ukraine, or any other foreign country.
"People like Thomas Massey and Marjorie Taylor Greene have made this point," he continued. "Israel suffered a terrible loss – and I hope that they're able to defend themselves and do what they need to do and take care of that. But they are a modern country, perfectly capable of defending themselves against terrorists. We should be keeping that money at home. We should be taking care of Americans," he told show host Jenna Ellis.
Former Fox News show host Tucker Carlson also challenged Johnson's initial legislative thrust. "If you think the welfare of another country is the most important thing for you as one of the leaders of our country, third in line to the presidency, you have lost the thread, son," Carlson said on his podcast.
The absurdity of Democrats' response
Republican opposition aside, Johnson's measure passed the House 226-196 with 214 GOP votes. It faces an uphill climb in the Senate and a certain veto from Biden if National Security Advisor John Kirby is correct – a reality that Rep. Andy Harris (R-Maryland) calls absurd.
"That's ridiculous. It's exactly the amount of money the president asked for, but the only thing we did is we said in an era of $33½ trillion federal debts, you have to find the money somewhere to pay for it. We chose to take one-fifth of the increased IRS money that the president put into the so-called Inflation Reduction Act last year," Harris said on Washington Watch Friday.
"We said, 'Yeah, okay, we're going to hire, instead of 87,000 agents, we can only hire 60,000 agents. Somehow that's a national security threat? Look, the White House just wants to choose IRS agents over help to Israel. It's that clear."
Harris told show host Joseph Backholm that Democrats are ignoring the urgency of aid to Israel.
"Ukraine is a subject for another day. The fact of the matter is Israel needs our help. They need our help now, and anything else is dodging the whole issue. They're going to say, 'Oh yeah, we need to pile on aid to Taiwan, aid to Ukraine.' [But] we can divide all those up," the Republican lawmaker argued. "The most urgent need is in Israel. That's the one we took up first. We fully funded the President's request. He just wants to choose IRS agents over Israeli safety and freedom."
