In his first TV interview after becoming House Speaker, Mike Johnson said that the U.S. is firmly behind Israel. Meanwhile, back home, both lawmakers and the Biden Administration must find common ground to acknowledge that “God has not finished” with America.
Johnson said on “Hannity”, that the House was ready to offer a $ 14.5 billion support bill for Israel. This is slightly more than the Louisiana Republican claimed Israel had requested via the White House.
The difference between the House Appropriation and other federal assistance is that money will be given in exchange for “paying for” in budgets, not just printing money.
Johnson stated that the figure was a “very precise number tied to very precise measures” and each dollar would be offset with a reduction elsewhere.
Johnson expressed his hope that the United States would not be forced to send troops to Israel to fight against Hamas, which is backed by Iran. However, he added that he had reminded President Biden’s staff during a White House gathering on Thursday that they were limited in their ability to respond directly without congressional approval.
He said that the Founding Fathers envisioned “multitudes of wise counsel” on such matters. This is why Congress, and not the Executive Branch, has the authority to declare war.
Johnson said that he had previously met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that, while Americans speak of “existential threat” in the United States, Israel faces at least one daily.
He said, “Their neighbors want to eliminate them.”
“America will support [Netanyahu] – They tell us that when we are in Israel, the reason why we can sustain ourselves and survive is because everyone knows our biggest ally is America.”
