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House rejects bill to strip Israel aid despite over 100 Democrats voting to cut funding
House rejects bill to strip Israel aid despite over 100 Democrats voting to cut funding.
The US House of Representatives defeated an amendment to cut off aid to Israel on Wednesday, despite nearly half of Democrats supporting it, reflecting a growing rupture between US progressives and Israel over the war in Gaza. The House voted 314 to 104 to defeat the measure, offered as an amendment to a State Department spending bill by Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky.
However, 103 Democrats and one Republican backed it, a sharp departure from years in which bills supporting Israel passed almost unanimously. Massie is a fiscal hawk who opposes all foreign aid, but he said he was also responding to the heavy toll on civilians of Israel's attacks in Gaza. "There have been 70,000 casualties in Gaza, and I don't think we should be part of that," he said during House debate. His amendment would have blocked $3.3 billion in annual security assistance Washington sends Israel.
Hamas-led fighters killed 1,200 people during a cross-border attack into Israel on October 7, 2023, according to Israeli tallies. The Gaza health ministry said Israel's subsequent offensive on the Strip killed more than 73,000 Palestinians.
Wednesday's vote would have been largely symbolic even if the House had backed the amendment. To become law, it would have had to pass the Senate and override an almost certain veto by President Donald Trump, who has made support for Israel a central piece of his foreign policy.
Criticism of Israel by US political leaders marks a dramatic shift. In September 2016, the House voted 405 to 4 in favor of a resolution supporting the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding with Israel. Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the House Democratic leader, said he would oppose Massie's amendment, saying it was "too broad." But No. 2 House Democrat, Representative Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, said she would support it. "We should not provide a blank check for military aid to any country that does not comply with US law, interests, and values," she said in a statement.