Several moderate House Republicans and Democrats are hoping to revive stalled military aid for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan, introducing a $66 billion bill that pairs the funding with Trump-era border security policies.
The latest attempt to send aid to allies comes as two Senate foreign spending packages, one with border security and one without, have been killed by Republicans.
It also underscores the urgency in Congress to push aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia.
This proposal, dubbed the Defending Borders, Defending Democracies Act, comes from centrist Republican Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Don Bacon of Nebraska and Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon and Democratic Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Jim Costa of California and Jared Golden of Maine.
Republicans have pushed back against the Senate’s prior attempts because they said neither did enough to secure the U.S./Mexico border, arguing the U.S. should be protected before helping allies with their borders.
Mr. Fitzpatrick acknowledged that point, but said continued threats and attacks from “dictators, terrorists, and totalitarians” also need to be addressed.
“Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan are all freedom-loving democracies, they are our allies, and we must assist them in protecting their borders just as we must protect our own,” Mr. Fitzpatrick said. “We can, and must, achieve all of the above.”
Mr. Fitzpatrick described the bill as bare-bones compared with the most recent $95 billion proposal passed by the Senate. That price reduction comes from axing humanitarian aid, which will be a sticking point for Democrats, and lowering the overall amount of funding for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
The legislation, which focuses on military aid, would send $47 billion to Ukraine, $10 billion to Israel and just shy of $5 billion to support operations in the Indo-Pacific region. The bill also includes over $2 billion to U.S. Central Command for combat expenditures related to recent conflicts in the Red Sea.
Similar to one of its failed Senate predecessors, the bill includes border security measures. The legislation would bring back former President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” for one year, but the success of that policy requires buy-in from Mexico, which rejects it.
The lawmakers don’t have a guarantee from House Speaker Mike Johnson that it will come to the floor for a vote. With Congress leaving until Feb. 27 only to return to the first of two deadlines to fund the government, it’s unlikely the legislation would be considered swiftly.
Sending more money to Ukraine is a prickly subject for factions of the House GOP, who contend that President Biden should produce an end-game strategy for the region before sending any more aid.
Others who support Ukraine aid might have difficulty supporting the paired-down package.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul, Texas Republican, said the legislation was “not well thought out” and would have a hard time getting to the floor without a proposal to pay for it — a move heavily favored by Mr. Johnson.
Even so, Mr. Fitzpatrick said he would do whatever it takes to bring the bill to the floor. House Democrats have been circulating a discharge petition, or a legislative tool that bypasses leadership to force a vote, for the previous Senate foreign-aid package.
Mr. McCaul warned at a forum hosted by the Christian Science Monitor on Friday that if a discharge petition was used for the latest supplemental spending bill, it would be a “complete evisceration” of Mr. Johnson’s power as speaker.
“I think Republicans that will be supportive of Ukraine wouldn’t support a discharge because it’s really going around leadership altogether,” he said.
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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