Washington DC, United States: The concerns related to the aid for war-hit nations – Ukraine, Israel, the southern border and Taiwan is under concern as the US House of Representative are unable to end its search for a speaker.
According to various reports, some of the House Representatives have been bothered about the future aid of US$ 105 billion security supplemental request. Reportedly, this issue has divided the Republicans, several have indicated that the administration’s request for funding will not be approved in its current form, with many emphasizing the need for a policy overhaul alongside additional border security funding, a stance that may face opposition from Senate Democrats.
In this regard, Rep Chip Roy of Texas took his official handle on X, formerly known as Twitter. He noted, “This is a hell no. And no one in the House GOP should support it. It’s asinine, unpaid for, ineffective and dangerous.”
Other Republicans criticized the administration for linking funding for Israel with funding for Ukraine, especially as support for the latter has waned in recent months.
One of the Republican Reps for California, Mike Garcia, who is also a defense appropriator, was quoted saying, “Israel deserves to have a conversation that is devoted to them right now,” as per CNN.
Garcia further mentioned, “We need to strip out the Ukraine funding and we need to give the Israeli partners the respect they deserve.”
On the same breadth, the Republicans who are supporting the administration for the funding for Ukraine and Israel have asked why the President is asking for so much. Rep of Nebraska Don Bacon was quoted saying, “It seems like a lot,” adding, “I’d like to see the breakout of the needs. I want to support it, but that seems like a lot of money.”
While there is strong bipartisan backing for Ukraine, funding military operations in the country has become a contentious issue, posing a challenge for future speakers, much like it did for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. According to the sources, the administration’s request for assistance for Ukraine is over US$ 60 billion and for Israel is above US$ 14 billion.
The toughest decision to be made by the upcoming speaker about sending additional aid to Ukraine is that the Republicans are divided on the matter. However, for some members, support for Ukraine is one of the major issues.
Rep Pennsylvania Brain Fitzpatrick was quoted saying, “I support Ukraine and Israel. I think we should do both. I think we should do whatever gets both of them across the finish line, whatever strategy works best. I don’t want to hold back one for the other. I support both,” as per news agency AP.
Additionally, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has clearly outlined that he is among the Republicans who hope that the request is taken up as soon as possible.
Schumer asserted, “This legislation is too important to wait for the House to settle their chaos. Senate Democrats will move expeditiously on this request, and we hope that our Republican colleagues across the aisle will join us to pass this much-needed funding.”
The speaker race to resume on Monday
Various reports have outlined that the US House of Representatives will gather on Monday to choose the US House Speaker. To date, the House has been leaderless for more than three weeks.
To start the quest again, the Republicans have nominated nine (9) candidates, who will participate in a closed-door session.