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WASHINGTON — With the House of Representatives' weekend approval of a long-awaited foreign aid package, the question of military support to Israel and Ukraine is now in the hands of the Senate, where Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, is trying to rally opponents to "kill the bill."
Representatives approved a series of foreign aid bills Saturday totaling $95 billion to Israel, Ukraine and other allies on a bipartisan basis after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, agreed to bring the bills to a vote over opposition and threats to oust him from some in his own caucus. President Joe Biden has promised to approve the package if passed by the Senate, which will consider the aid as a single bill.
But Lee — who has repeatedly criticized efforts to send further military and economic aid to Ukraine — called the package "unadulterated capitulation" and appeared to try to bolster support for opposing a vote to close debate on the bill, which requires a 60-vote majority. In several posts, he accused some Republicans of being "progressive" for working with Democrats to pass the aid.
"This bill — the $95 billion menace passed by the House today — can't pass the Senate with Democrats alone," he posted on social platform X on Saturday. "If just 41 of the 49 Republicans in the Senate vote 'no,' this bill will be stopped dead in its tracks."
He also said the bill would give $9 billion to the Hamas terrorist group, referring to money provided for humanitarian aid for people in the Gaza Strip — many of whom are women and children — amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
The aid package also includes about $61 billion for Ukraine and to replenish U.S. weapons stockpiles, about $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid, and about $8 billion for U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region. A measure to require TikTok's parent company to divest from the social media platform in the U.S. or be banned was also included.
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— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) April 22, 2024
The Senate will convene Tuesday at 11 a.m. to consider the package, would could pass as early as Wednesday.
Lee appeared on Fox News on Sunday to push back against the House bills, telling Maria Bartiromo that if the Senate approves the bills, "We will have relinquished what little bargaining power we had left."
"We started saying months ago, Ukraine doesn't get another dime, especially until such time as ... Congress has passed legislation to force Joe Biden's hand" when it comes to securing the border, Lee said. "That didn't happen, and the Republican-led House of Representatives completely walked away from that yesterday."
"Look, this is a really good deal for Ukraine and (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskyy. It's a really good deal for Hamas, which stands to receive up to $9 billion of this $95 billion aid package," the senator added. "And this is not good for hardworking Americans who are finding more and more of their taxpayer dollars going to people other than Americans; going to secure border(s) other than the U.S. border."
A proposal to link Israel and Ukraine funding with enhanced border security was crafted by a group of bipartisan senators earlier this year, but Lee was adamant in opposing the bill, calling it a "hot mess" and a "crap-sandwich of a border bill."
Utah's four representatives — all Republicans — were split on the aid for Ukraine, but all four voted as a bloc in favor of aid to Israel, Indo-Pacific allies and the bill cracking down on TikTok.
Reps. Blake Moore and John Curtis voted in favor of the Ukraine funding, while Reps. Burgess Owens and Celeste Maloy voted against.
