According to the news portal Politico, the Republican leader of the US House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, has raised hopes of a possible vote on new US aid for Ukraine and Israel. Aid packages for both countries might possibly be voted on with a parliamentary maneuver, Johnson indicated, according to Politico. This would require a two-thirds majority to pass.
Since the Republicans only have a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives and are not allowed to vote unanimously for aid to Ukraine, numerous Democratic votes would be needed to pass the package. The majority of them support the aid for Ukraine.
Johnson added that consideration would be given to splitting aid to Ukraine and Israel into separate bills.
The Senate voted in February for an aid package that includes around $60 billion in support for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel, as well as billions in aid for Taiwan and other partners in the Indo-Pacific. The approval of the second chamber, the House of Representatives, is still pending.
Johnson is under pressure there because some are once morest further support for Ukraine. He has to fear that, like his predecessor Kevin McCarthy, he will be driven out of office if he messes with the right wing of his group.
