New House Speaker Mike Johnson is on a collision course over military aid to Ukraine

After two days in his new post, the new Republican Speaker of the House is heading into a heated debate over financing foreign wars.

With a $14 billion aid plan for Israel, on the condition that the same amount be deducted from the budget of the US tax authorities, Mike Johnson is trying to thwart the Biden administration. It also appears that the ultra-conservative minority that ousted Johnson’s predecessor Kevin McCarthy will set the tone in the House.

President Biden has already indicated that he will veto the Republican proposal if it gains majority support in Congress. The White House said in an official statement that aid provided to Israel should not become a pawn in domestic politics.

Biden’s plan

Meanwhile, his government is trying to rally parliament for a larger support package worth $105 billion, of which about $60 billion will go to Ukraine and about $15 billion to Israel. The rest is divided between Taiwan and the US border patrol itself.

The government also wants to allocate a small portion of this amount to humanitarian aid for Gazans, a thorn in the side of many Republicans, who fear this money will end up with Hamas.

On Tuesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Department colleague Lloyd Austin appeared before the Senate Approval Committee to once again stress how important it is to allocate money to both conflicts. “Removing Ukraine from the package represents a major victory for Vladimir Putin, whose ambitions extend far beyond Kiev,” Austin said.

Fear of stagnation

Their insistence indicates that the government fears reaching a deadlock that could last, in the worst case, until November 17, the day a new government will be formed. close The government threatens as long as no agreement is reached on the budget.

Blinken and Austin received support from Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has been the most vocal advocate for the Ukraine issue in his deeply divided party. “The threats to Israel and Ukraine are serious and intertwined,” said McConnell, who received Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova the day before.

The rest of the Republican bloc in the Senate is divided. Some prominent Republicans, like Lindsey Graham, echoed McConnell. Others support Johnson’s proposal, so as not to immediately undermine the new Speaker of the House.

Wealthy tax evaders

No one wants to reject Israel, not even the Democrats. Knowing this, House Speaker Mike Johnson linked support for Israel to a reduction in the Federal Tax Authority (IRS).

The IRS has nothing to do with the conflict between Israel and Hamas. But for Johnson, it is a convenient tool for “trolling” Biden, e.g New York times He writes. Because in the context of Biden’s ambitious and controversial inflation reduction law, the IRS received an additional $80 billion, mainly to deal with wealthy tax evaders. This investment has gone down rather poorly with Republicans.