The White House on Tuesday blasted the Israel funding bill proposed by House Republicans as “bad for Israel” and US national security, insisting that President Biden would veto the legislation.
“This bill is not good for Israel, for the Middle East region, and for our own national security,” the Office of Management and Budget said in a scathing statement of administration policy on the so-called Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2024.
The $14.3 billion bill would separate aid for Israel from the 80-year-old president’s broader emergency funding request that includes billions for Ukraine.
The spending measure would also strip humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians from Biden’s $106 billion request and would be paid for in part through cuts to Internal Revenue Service funding appropriated under the president’s so-called Inflation Reduction Act.
“Rather than presenting a bipartisan package that strengthens America’s national security, the bill fails to meet the urgent needs of the moment by deepening our divide and severely eroding historic bipartisan support for Israel’s security,” the OMB memo said. “It is instilling a bias against Israel, making our allies pawns in our politics, at a time when we must stand together.”
Joe Biden is expected to veto an Israel aid package crafted by House Republicans after the White House called it “bad for Israel.” Shutterstock Smoke rises from inside Northern Gaza on October 31 following an attack reported by the Israeli army following a surprise attack by Hamas terrorists on October 7.Getty Images
The budget office argued that the $9 billion in Biden’s request to go toward humanitarian efforts in Ukraine, Israel and Gaza was a “moral imperative” and denied it would be a “big mistake.”
“Humanitarian aid is urgently needed to alleviate the suffering of civilians in Gaza, but it is also essential support for innocent Ukrainians facing the brutality of Putin’s war,” the statement read, arguing that “conflict and extremism would be more likely to spread” without humanitarian aid. which “will only benefit Hamas and other bad actors.”
OMB also criticized proposed IRS cuts House Republicans hope to tie to funding for the Jewish state’s Iron Dome missile defense system and military equipment for the Israel Defense Forces.
Palestinians inspect the damage to buildings in the Jabaliya refugee camp destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City on Tuesday, Oct. 31. AP
“The disadvantage of this particular offset is that it adds to the deficit and will help some wealthy individuals and large corporations cheat on their taxes,” the memo said.
Biden’s $106 billion proposal, announced earlier this month, seeks $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel, $14 billion for immigration enforcement and $16.55 billion for other concerns, including further aid for Taiwan.
Newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has publicly urged the Ukrainian and Israeli components to “bifurcate” as he grapples with a GOP conference skeptical of further support for Kyiv.
Johnson argued that aid to Ukraine needed stronger oversight before it could be approved by Congress.
Newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has publicly urged the Ukrainian and Israeli components to “bifurcate” as he grapples with a GOP conference skeptical of further support for Kyiv. AP
OMB added that the Biden administration will “continue to engage with both houses of Congress on a bipartisan basis to seek agreement on the critical national security package that was sent to Congress several weeks ago.”
“If the President is presented with this bill, he will veto it,” the memo concluded.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
