Biden requests $106 billion national security package, including Ukraine, Israel funds

In a significant development on Friday, U.S. President Joe Biden urgently requested a $106 billion national security package, which includes military aid for Ukraine and Israel. However, this request faces obstacles due to political paralysis within the Republican party in Congress.

President Biden’s request came a day after he drew a direct connection between the Hamas attack on Israel and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, aiming to convince Americans of the necessity for global leadership by the United States.

During an impassioned speech in the Oval Office, the 80-year-old Democrat argued that the substantial funding, totaling $105.85 billion, with $61 billion designated for military aid for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel, would safeguard U.S. interests for generations to come.

However, this request comes at a time when the U.S. House of Representatives is in disarray, with Republicans, who hold a narrow majority, struggling to elect a speaker, marking one of their worst meltdowns in decades.

Shalanda Young, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, emphasized, “The world is watching, and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities.” She urged Congress to address these issues as part of a comprehensive bipartisan agreement in the coming weeks.

President Biden’s substantial aid package attempts to unite various crises and encourage national unity among House Republicans. It also allocates $6.4 billion for addressing the migration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, a key concern for the right-wing party.

The package includes $7 billion for countering China and strengthening allies in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as over $9 billion for humanitarian assistance to Gaza, Ukraine, and Israel.

One of the notable aspects of this funding request is the effort to reinforce support for Ukraine by linking it with funding for Israel, which enjoys widespread bipartisan backing. A growing number of Republicans and U.S. voters oppose additional security assistance to Ukraine.

An earlier aid request for Ukraine had been stalled when Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted in a rebellion in September. Since then, no Republican has secured enough votes to replace him, with the most recent attempt by Donald Trump ally Jim Jordan failing twice.

President Biden’s Thursday speech underscored the interconnectedness of the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel, portraying the U.S. as a “beacon to the world” confronting “terrorists” like Hamas and “tyrants” like Putin.

The Kremlin reacted to Biden’s comments on Friday, denouncing them and stating, “We do not accept such a tone in relation to the Russian Federation, in relation to our president.”

Biden was scheduled to meet with European Union leaders Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen at the White House on Friday to convey a message of unity regarding the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.