The White House requested nearly $106 billion from Congress on Friday to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel, and U.S. border security, but did not provide any strategy for securing the funds from the stalled Congress. President Joe Biden's funding request comes days after his visit to Israel and his pledge of solidarity amidst its bombardment of Gaza following an attack by Hamas militants that resulted in the deaths of 1,400 people in southern Israel.
By combining funding for Israel with Ukraine, border security, refugee assistance, measures to counter China, and other thoroughly discussed priorities, Biden hopes to introduce a national security spending bill that could gain approval and support in the House, which is currently chaotic. The House, under Republican control last year, has been without a speaker for more than two weeks.
“American leadership holds the world together. If we put that at risk and walk away from Ukrainians or turn our back on Israeli and Palestinian civilians, it’s just not worth it. That’s why I’ve sent an urgent budget request to Congress to fund America’s national security needs,” President Biden commented in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
