President Biden told the top four leaders of Congress that there could be devastating consequences if the House doesn’t move to pass emergency aid for Israel and Ukraine.
“I think the need is urgent,” Mr. Biden said at the White House meeting. “I think the consequence of inaction every day in Ukraine is dire. I’ve been speaking to some of our G7 partners … and they are very concerned.”
Mr. Biden stressed that the $95 billion aid package also includes billions in security assistance for Israel as it tries to wipe out Hamas after the surprise terrorist attacks on Oct 7.
“We need to deal with the Israeli portion,” Mr. Biden told the lawmakers. “We have to replenish the air defenses from Israel and make sure they don’t face the threat from what’s going on in the Middle East, not just from Hamas, but from Iran.”
The meeting is Mr. Biden‘s first with House Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, in more than a month. Mr. Johnson has resisted bringing the security aid package to the House floor for a vote after it passed the Senate with bipartisan support.
Mr. Johnson is facing pressure from Republicans who have grown weary of sending billions to Ukraine instead of taking care of urgent needs in the U.S. such as the chaos emanating from the southern border.
Former President Trump also opposes the aid package.
In addition to Mr. Johnson, Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies, both New York Democrats, attended the meeting along with Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
The group also is trying to hammer out a spending agreement to keep the government funded for the rest of the fiscal year. If they are unable to forge a path on funding, the Departments of Agriculture, Energy, Transportation, Veterans Affairs, and Housing and Urban Development will run out of money at midnight Friday.
Thanks to the spending deal brokered by Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, they have until March 9 to fund the rest of the government, including the Defense, State, Homeland, Security and Justice departments.
Mr. Biden said he believed the lawmakers were all on the same page when it comes to averting a government shutdown, warning that even a partial closure would have resonated throughout the U.S. economy.
“I think it’s Congress‘s responsibility to fund the government. A shutdown could damage the economy significantly,” Mr. Biden said.