The House voted resoundingly Saturday to approve $95 billion in foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, as President Mike Johnson put his job on the line to advance the long-awaited aid package. blocked by mobilizing support from leading Republicans and Democrats.
In four straight votes, overwhelming bipartisan coalitions of lawmakers approved new rounds of funding for the three U.S. allies, as well as another bill intended to sweeten the deal for conservatives and that could result in a nationwide ban on TikTok.
The scene in the House reflected both broad congressional support for continued aid to Ukraine’s military in fending off Russia, and the extraordinary political risk taken by Mr. Johnson to challenge the anti- interventionist in his party who had sought to thwart the bill. measure. Minutes before the vote on aid to kyiv, Democrats began waving small Ukrainian flags on the House floor, to the jeers of far-right Republicans.
The legislation includes $60 billion for Kyiv; $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid to civilians in conflict zones, including Gaza; and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific region. He would direct the president to ask the Ukrainian government for repayment of $10 billion in economic aid, a concept supported by former President Donald J. Trump, who insisted that any aid to kyiv take the form of a loan . But it would also allow the president to cancel these loans starting in 2026.
It also contained a measure to pave the way for the sale of frozen Russian sovereign assets to help finance Ukraine’s war effort, as well as a new round of sanctions against Iran. The Senate is expected to pass the bill as early as Tuesday and send it to President Biden’s desk, ending his tortured journey through Congress.
“Our adversaries are working together to undermine our Western values and undermine our democracy,” Rep. Michael McCaul, Republican of Texas and chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said Saturday as the House debated the measure. “We can’t be afraid right now. We must do what is right. Evil is on the move. History calls us and now is the time to act.
“History will judge us by our actions here today,” he continued. “As we deliberate on this vote, you must ask yourself this question: ‘Am I Chamberlain or Churchill?’ »
The vote was 311-112 in favor of aid to Ukraine, with a majority of Republicans — 112 — voting against and one, Rep. Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, voting “present.” The House approved aid to Israel by a vote of 366 to 58; and in Taiwan by a vote of 385 to 34, with Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Democrat of Michigan, voting “present.” The bill to impose sanctions on Iran and require the sale of TikTok by its Chinese owner or ban the app in the United States passed by a vote of 360 to 58.
“Today, members of both parties in the House voted to advance our national security interests and send a clear message about the power of American leadership on the world stage,” Biden said. “At this critical inflection point, they came together to answer the call of history, passing urgently needed national security legislation that I have fought for months.”
Minutes after the vote, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked lawmakers, calling out Mr. Johnson by name “for the decision that keeps history on track.”
“Democracy and freedom will always matter globally and will never fail as long as America helps protect them,” he wrote on social media. “The vital American aid bill passed by the House today will prevent the war from spreading, save thousands and thousands of lives, and help both our nations become stronger. »
Outside the Capitol, a jubilant crowd waved Ukrainian flags and chanted “Thank you, USA,” while departing lawmakers gave them thumbs ups and waved smaller flags of their own.
For months, it remained uncertain whether Congress would approve new funding for Ukraine, even as momentum shifted in Moscow’s favor. This caused a wave of concern in kyiv and Europe, because the United States, the largest provider of military aid in Ukraine, would turn its back on the young democracy.
And it raised the question of whether the political turmoil that has rocked the United States had actually destroyed what has long been a strong bipartisan consensus in favor of projecting American values to the world. The last time Congress approved a significant tranche of funding for Ukraine was in 2022, before Republicans took control of the House.
With an “America First” sentiment gripping the party’s voting base, led by Mr. Trump, Republicans came out last year against another aid package for kyiv, saying the issue should not even be considered unless Mr. Biden agrees to tough anti-immigration measures. . When Senate Democrats agreed to legislation earlier this year combining aid with tougher border control provisions, Mr. Trump denounced it and Republicans rejected it out of hand.
But after the Senate passed its own $95 billion emergency aid legislation to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan without any immigration measures, Mr. Johnson began — at first privately, then out loud – to tell his allies that he would ensure that the United States sent aid to kyiv.
Ultimately, even in the face of the threat of ouster from ultraconservative members, he bypassed the contingent of hardline lawmakers that once made up his political home and relied on Democrats to pass the measure. This is a remarkable turnaround for a right-wing MP who, as a rank-and-file member, repeatedly voted against aid to Ukraine and who, a few months ago, declared that he would never allow this issue to be put to a vote before his term. the party’s border demands were met.
In the days leading up to the vote, Mr. Johnson began arguing forcefully that Congress’s role was to help Ukraine beat back the advances of authoritarian rule. Warning that Russian forces could move through the Baltics and Poland if Ukraine falls, Mr Johnson said he had made the decision to advance aid to kyiv because he “would prefer to send bullets to Ukraine rather than American boys.”
“I think this is an important moment and an important opportunity to make this decision,” Mr. Johnson told reporters at the Capitol after the votes. “I think we did our job here and I think history will judge that.”
Mr. Johnson structured the measures, which were sent to the Senate as a single bill, to attract different coalitions of support without allowing opposition from any one element to derail the whole thing.
“I will give each member of the House the opportunity to vote according to their conscience and their will,” he declared.
In a nod to right-wing demands, Mr Johnson allowed a vote just before foreign aid bills on a tough border control measure, but the bill was rejected after failing to reach a majority two-thirds necessary for its adoption. And the speaker refused to tie the immigration bill to the foreign aid program, knowing that would effectively kill the spending plan.
His decision to move forward with the package infuriated ultraconservatives at his conference, who accused Mr. Johnson of reneging on his promise not to allow a vote on foreign aid without first securing sweeping policy concessions on the southern border. That prompted two Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Paul Gosar of Arizona, to join Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia’s bid to remove Mr. Johnson from the top job.
Greene said the Ukraine aid bill supports “an economic model based on blood, murder and war in foreign countries.”
“We should finance the construction of our weapons and ammunition, not send them to foreign countries,” she said before her proposal to cut money to kyiv to zero failed by 351 votes against 71.
Much of the funding for Ukraine is intended to replenish U.S. stockpiles after supplies are shipped to kyiv.
Since the Russian invasion in 2022, Congress has allocated $113 billion in funding to support Ukraine’s war effort. According to the Institute for Study of War, a Washington-based research group, $75 billion was allocated directly to the country for humanitarian, financial and military support, with another $38 billion earmarked for security assistance. were spent largely in the United States.
Far-right Republican opposition to the legislation — both in the House and on the panel critical of the rules — forced Mr. Johnson to rely on Democrats to get the legislation across the finish line.
“If Ukraine does not receive the support it needs to defeat Russia’s outrageous assault on its sovereign territory, the legacy of this Congress will be the appeasement of a dictator, the destruction of an allied nation and a fractured Europe,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro. of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee. “Our credibility will have disappeared, in the eyes of our allies and our adversaries. And gone is the America that promised to defend freedom, democracy and human rights, wherever they are threatened or attacked. »
Thirty-seven liberal Democrats opposed the $26 billion aid package for Israel because the legislation imposed no conditions on how Israel could use U.S. funding, amid widespread civilian casualties and a imminent famine in Gaza. This showed a notable dent in long-standing bipartisan support for Israel in Congress, but it was a relatively small opposition bloc given that left-leaning lawmakers had pushed for a broad vote. no” on the bill in order to send a message to Mr. Biden. on the depth of opposition within his political coalition to his support for Israel’s war tactics.
“Sending more weapons to the Netanyahu government will make the United States even more responsible for the atrocities and horrific humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which is currently in a famine season,” said Illinois Democratic Rep. Jonathan L Jackson.
Carl Hulse, Annie KarniAnd Kayla Guo contributed to reporting from Washington and Marc Santora from Kyiv.
