OPINION:
Almost two weeks after Palestinian terrorists attacked Israel, President Biden addressed Americans and attempted to link Hamas’ Oct. 7 slaughter of Israelis to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On Oct. 20, Mr. Biden stated that the “assault on Israel echoes nearly 20 months of war, tragedy and brutality inflicted on the people of Ukraine.” His words that evening set the policy tone of tying Ukraine and Israel under one coalition of aggression.
Efforts to couple these two wars follow years of Mr. Biden’s pressing of Israel to embrace the administration’s stance on Ukraine while granting minimal consideration for the geopolitical realities facing the Jewish state. Moreover, the Democrats’ insistence on connecting assistance serves to strain Republican support for Israel by forcing the GOP, which has grown more vocal in its opposition to giving billions more to Ukraine, to weigh boosting two very different allies.
Israel is locked in a battle for its survival. The country’s defeat of Hamas and Iran’s other proxies would benefit the United States and the entire free world. As the sole democratic outpost in the Middle East, Israel’s fight against Iran and its dangerous partners prevents rogue actors from metastasizing, with America reaping a stronger security posture as Israeli forces reduce the capacity of terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah to operate in other parts of the globe.
Mr. Biden has repeatedly maintained that he will veto any funding bill that does not contain money for Ukraine. Days after the House of Representatives rejected stand-alone legislation that would have sent almost $17 billion to Israel, over 20 Republicans voted against a $95.3 billion spending package in the Senate. The legislation, approved in a 70-29 vote, would designate $60 billion to Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel, $9 billion in humanitarian assistance for the Gaza Strip and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific region.
Reflecting administration pursuits to gain favor among progressives, Mr. Biden’s remarks after the passage of the bill centered on Ukraine. His passing rhetoric mentioning Israel was soon supplanted by an acknowledgment of America’s humanitarian intentions in Gaza.
As David Harsanyi wrote in a piece for The Federalist: “Not all comparisons work. Jews, for instance, have far stronger historic ties to Samaria and Judea than Ukrainians have to Donetsk or Crimea — even though only one has been asked to surrender land for peace.”
The president’s threats of rejecting legislation that solely advances Israel’s security, coupled with time spent on open equivocations, relieves the administration of backing positions that risk unsettling anti-Israel Democrats while comporting Israel’s challenges to fit Ukraine’s demands.
Merging both priorities sustains the narrative of Israel and Ukraine sharing the burdens of battle with little regard for the constraints Israel encounters to its north, as the armed forces of the Russian Federation retain control over areas in Syrian airspace. This unfortunate paradigm largely stems from the faulty policies instituted by former President Barack Obama.
As for liberals, linking the defensive plight of the two nations seek to depress Republican support for Israel by accessing the discord among a cadre of conservatives against furthering Ukraine expenditures. Many of the GOP senators voting down the $95.3 billion package did so over the absence of border security measures implemented by the Biden administration while acknowledging that the supplemental aid legislation contained almost $20 billion in nondefense expenditures.
In a letter to The Wall Street Journal, Sen. Tom Cotton, one of the chamber’s leading defenders of the U.S.-Israel alliance, cites the potential of Hamas to “steal or commandeer” the billions of dollars designated for Gaza’s civilians.
Democrats are displacing Israel’s role as an integral U.S. ally and uniting its mission with that of Ukraine. This phenomenon undercuts America’s role in the region while producing an obstacle in front of a historical conservative backing for the Jewish nation.
The Democrats’ strategy of joining the two countries’ missions and the party’s persistence in advancing Ukraine aid stokes the spirit of isolationism pervading some spaces in the House. On Feb. 6, 14 Republicans joined the majority of Democrats in rejecting the stand-alone bill that would have allocated $17.6 billion in emergency money to Israel.
Bearing some similarities with their Senate colleagues, many House Republicans who voted against the package said that their opposition stemmed from economic rather than ideological considerations. Before the vote, the House Freedom Caucus released a letter objecting to the bill and underscoring Israel’s role as America’s “most important ally.”
It bears mentioning that since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, the U.S. has given Ukraine around $80 billion, “making it the top recipient of foreign aid.”
While it remains prudent to engage in a healthy discussion involving funds for Ukraine, linking that compensation to money for Israel highlights an unease among a cohort of legislators who have long soured on sending billions more to Ukraine yet still back a robust alliance with Israel.
The U.S.-Israel bond is based on shared democratic values and mutual security interests. Democrats placing the Jewish state under a Ukrainian umbrella renders Israel a slice of a public debate dominated by another country and risks destabilizing the relationship with America’s critical ally in the Middle East.
• Irit Tratt is an independent writer residing in New York. Follow her on X @Irit_Tratt.
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