Congress considers aid funding for Israel, Ukraine

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday testified before a Senate committee in support of President Joe Biden’s emergency foreign aid request. The Biden administration’s $105 billion package includes aid for Israel and Ukraine, as well as funding for security at the U.S.-Mexico border and support for Taiwan as it faces threats from China. Lawmakers in the House and the Senate are split over the request, with broad bipartisan support for the package in the Senate but strong opposition to it in the Republican-controlled House.

Have alternative funding plans been proposed? Some lawmakers have expressed concerns with tying support for Israel to military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine. House Republicans on Monday introduced a $14 billion aid package for Israel. The proposal would use funding from the Internal Revenue Service approved in Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. Republican and Democratic senators have said they support Biden’s combined funding proposal.

Dig deeper: Read William Inboden’s column in WORLD Opinions about why the United States should provide its allies with financial support.