House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) pledged that the House will move on a stand-alone funding bill for aid to Israel this week, calling it an "urgent" and "pressing" need.
Johnson's intent to pass funding for Israel in the lower chamber that does not include funding for aid to Ukraine comes after President Joe Biden requested that aid for both countries be approved by Congress in one single package. While Republicans are united in their support for Israel, aid for Ukraine is more controversial, possibly jeopardizing both if they are voted on together.
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"We're gonna move a standalone Israel funding bill this week in the house," Johnson told Fox News's Maria Bartiromo on Sunday. "I know our colleagues, our Republican colleagues in the Senate, have a similar measure. We believe that that is a pressing and urgent need. There are lots of things going on around the world that we have to address, and we will, but right now, what's happening in Israel takes the immediate attention, and I think we've got to separate that and get it through. I believe there'll be bipartisan support for that, and I'm going to push very hard for it."
LIVE: I’m joining @MariaBartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures to discuss the latest on Israel, the appropriations process, and the impeachment inquiry. Tune in! https://t.co/56iNEsIY0Z
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) October 29, 2023
Johnson has voiced support for aid for Ukraine before but portrayed events in Israel as more serious on Sunday. Despite this, he sought to avoid portraying the move as partisan, saying that he hoped to garner bipartisan support for the measure.
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"My intention is not to use this for any partisan political gamesmanship," he said. "This is a very serious matter. And we heard reports firsthand, reports last night at that event, they were telling us the terrible things that are happening there ... the atrocities there, I can't even repeat to you on television. Some of the things that they told us firsthand that they've seen in Israel at the hands of Hamas and their accomplices. And so we've got to address this now."
Johnson's move reflects conflicts within the Republican Party over aid to Israel and Ukraine. Several Republicans have already spoken up about the need to separate aid for Israel and Ukraine, with the former being portrayed as of greater importance.