House Republicans seek to force left-wing Democrats to pick between military aid for Israel that they just overwhelmingly supported and President Joe Biden’s desire to appease the pro-Hamas contingent on the left, according to a media report.
Punchbowl News reported that on Thursday, the House is expected to vote on a bill mandating Biden to provide Israel with all of the aid lawmakers approved last month under the Israel Security Assistance Support Act.
The original bill earmarked $26 billion for Israel during its ongoing war with Hamas. About $9 billion of that amount is for alleged “humanitarian aid” directed to Palestinians who are caught in the crossfire but remain steadfastly loyal to their terrorist leaders.
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Last month, 173 House Democrats and 46 Democratic senators voted for the Israeli aid bill.
Yet Republicans assembled the measure up for consideration on Thursday after Biden announced he would withhold military aid if Israel invaded Rafah, Hamas’ last stronghold inside Gaza.
Biden specifically announced that the U.S. would halt the delivery of 3,500 heavy aerial bombs as the Israeli Defense Forces push for the control of Rafah, Punchbowl News reported.
According to the outlet, Biden’s senior White House staff is now pressuring House Democrats to reject the GOP bill.
Republicans argue that Biden should not interfere with how Israel chooses to prosecute the war launched after Haams killed more than 1,200 Jews, including at least 30 Americans, in a terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
Read: Biden Greenlights $1 Billion Arms Package for Israel Amidst Ongoing Gaza Conflict
On the other hand, Democrats claim Republicans should not disrupt how Biden handles foreign policy.
Biden has already pledged to veto the bill if it gets to his desk.
Yet, as Newsmax noted, Democrats would hit a “tricky spot, as they either must vote against Israel or Biden.”
If they choose Biden, the Democrats, given that few of them have publicly condemned the anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas protests now roiling numerous college campuses, run the risk of looking more anti-Israel than they already do.
In late March, a Gallup poll found that 75% of Democrats oppose Israel’s handling of the war.
Last week, a poll by the Economist and YouGov found that 26% of Democrats are sympathetic to the Palestinians, while only 15% felt that way about Israel.
Those numbers have reversed since the Oct. 7 attack.
The rest of the respondents say they feel the same about both sides.
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