House Showdown: Vote Looms on Biden’s Foreign Aid Package Despite Conservative Dissent
A proposed House rule faces a crucial vote Friday in the latest showdown between Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican lawmakers. The rule would combine four unrelated foreign aid bills into a single legislative package—an approach favored by President Joe Biden but long resisted by conservatives.
Johnson, R-La., has pledged that lawmakers will get to vote on each of the four bills individually. However, following those separate votes, the bills will be consolidated into a $95.3 billion unified package without further deliberation.
This combined legislation would then be sent to the Senate, where it is expected to pass.
The House Rules Committee voted late Thursday night to adopt the rule and advance it to the floor for a vote Friday. The committee’s three conservative members—Reps. Thomas Massie , R-Ky., Ralph Norman, R-S.C., and Chip Roy , R-Texas—voted against the measure.
Following the committee’s decision, Heritage Action for America announced its opposition to the rule—a rare stance against a procedural motion. With expectations that each individual bill will pass independently, defeating the rule Friday presents conservatives with their best opportunity to block the foreign aid package in the House.
Johnson’s strategy integrates funding bills for Ukraine ($60.84 billion), Israel ($26.38 billion), and the Indo-Pacific ($8.12 billion) with the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act, a bill that would impose more sanctions on China, Iran, and Russia. In addition, the speaker’s strategy incorporates a bill mandating TikTok ‘s parent company to sever ties with the Communist Chinese government or cease operations within the United States.
Lawmakers also will vote on a bill related to border security, although it won’t be included in the four-bill package governed by the House rule adopted Thursday.
Johnson’s endorsement of this comprehensive foreign aid approach follows months of lobbying from the Biden administration regarding its $95 billion supplemental request. The Senate approved the measure in February.
At the time, Johnson criticized the Senate for not prioritizing border security.
“Promising votes on four ‘separate’ bills that are immediately tied back together is a disingenuous maneuver that lawmakers should reject,” Heritage Action Executive Vice President Ryan Walker said.
Heritage Action highlighted in an accompanying memo that the House rule “is designed to produce a single bill consistent with the Senate-passed foreign aid supplemental.”
Conservatives have voiced objections to the Senate’s supplemental spending bill, advocating prioritization of border security and separate consideration of each bill. However, the pending rule fails to address either concern.
“The rule put forth by leadership makes the House bills almost identical to the reckless, unrelated supplemental package passed by the Senate,” Heritage Action’s Walker said. “A conservative-led House can and must do better for Americans than promising a watered-down border bill that’s going nowhere and attaching a crucial TikTok bill that’s already passed the chamber. Heritage Action urges responsible, honest action to defend America’s interests—but the rule to combine these four bills fails on both counts.”
>>> Fact Sheet: Supplemental Appropriations to Meet the Moment
Almost a year ago, in May 2023, the House passed the Secure the Border Act (HR 2). Subsequently, in November, the House approved a $14 billion aid bill for Israel by a vote of 226-196, despite opposition from the Biden administration and Senate Democrats. The House passed the TikTok bill in March.
Heritage Action, the grassroots partner of The Heritage Foundation, which boasts 2 million activists nationwide, noted the rarity of its decision to score a rule vote. (Heritage established The Daily Signal in 2014.)
Johnson is already facing conservative backlash for pursuing the unpopular foreign aid bills. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Massie are seeking Johnson’s formal removal as speaker. Now, the uproar over the House rule is exacerbating those feelings among other members.
The House Freedom Caucus —an influential coalition of conservative lawmakers—announced Thursday it would oppose the rule.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine two years ago, the United States has allocated about $113 billion to Ukraine, averaging approximately $900 per American household . Despite this, the Biden administration persistently has sought an additional $60 billion from U.S. taxpayers to bolster efforts in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Growing opposition to foreign aid is consistent with new polling unveiled Thursday and exclusively shared with The Daily Signal.
>>> Republican Opposition to Ukraine Funding Now at 66%
American voters voice opposition to each of the foreign aid bills under consideration, according the J.L. Partners poll of 897 likely U.S. voters.
- Support for Ukraine funding, championed by President Joe Biden, stands at 33%, with opposition at 47%.
- Indo-Pacific funding garners support from 23% of respondents, while 42% express opposition.
- Funding for Israel draws support from 27%, with 50% in opposition.
The poll underscores robust opposition from Republican voters toward Ukraine funding, with a mere 17% endorsing a $60 billion loan for the nation while 66% express opposition.
J.L. Partners conducted the poll between April 16-18, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.
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