The Biden administration has notified Congress of its intention to proceed with a massive $1 billion arms package for Israel, despite recent tensions over the planned assault on Rafah. The deal includes $700 million in tank ammunition, $500 million in tactical vehicles, and $60 million in mortar rounds, aimed at replenishing Israel’s depleted stockpiles.
The decision comes less than a week after the White House paused a shipment of bombs over concerns about civilian casualties in Rafah. While the administration has expressed opposition to a full-scale attack on the city, it has only withheld a single shipment of 2,000-pound bombs, with President Biden stating that he would consider withholding additional weapons if Israel targets population centers.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has emphasized that the US will continue to provide military assistance for self-defense, but has paused the bomb shipment due to concerns about densely populated areas.
Israel has carried out airstrikes and sent forces into Rafah, and the US has sent tens of thousands of bombs, ammunition, and equipment since the war began.
The new arms deal, which has been under consideration since spring, is a rare instance of new weapons deals with Israel since last October. The notification to Congress starts a review period, during which lawmakers can seek to block the transfers.
Almost simultaneously as the report coming out revealing the new arms sales to Israel, the White House released a statement saying that President Biden would veto a bill to prevent the administration from withholding arms sales or weapons transfers to Israel.
The White House’s budget office expressed strong opposition to the bill, calling it “a misguided reaction to a deliberate distortion of the Administration’s approach to Israel.” The statement emphasized that Biden’s commitment to Israel remains “ironclad” and that the country is already receiving “what it needs to defend itself.”
The GOP-led bill, which is likely to pass in the Republican-controlled House but face opposition in the Democrat-controlled Senate, aims to freeze the budgets of the secretary of state, defense secretary, and National Security Council until the arms Israel is expecting from the US are released. The bill is primarily aimed at forcing Biden to release a shipment of high-payload bombs for Israel that he withheld earlier this month due to concerns about their potential use in a major Rafah offensive.
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10 Responses
What is the meaning of a congressional bill to halt a presidents arms embargo, if the president himself can veto it
The upcoming election is not national security objectives
There is something here that I understand easily, without being a politician or a military expert. The defense of Israel requires more than Iron Dome. Those defenses do not do anything at all to halt the firing of rockets and missiles at Israel. And the past several decades are proof that these terrorist animals have zero interest in stopping their efforts to kill as many Jews as they can. They only sometimes aim their munitions at soldiers. Mostly, they target civilians. And Biden has said and done nothing about that. In fact, he sent them aid, money, and stuffed billions to Iran that underwrites all of the terror. The only “defense” that can be effective is the offense of eradicating Hamas and the other terror groups. Nearly every politician with any intelligence has noted this, and is fully supportive of that goal. Only Biden, who has sold his soul to the devil incarnate in the Squad, is more concerned about the Palestinian civilians, whose deaths will be the work of Hamas. The Rafah operation is defensive, and is being conducted by the only military in the world that evacuates civilians. It is pathetic that Biden lacks the cognitive functrion to understand something so simple. And iit is equally tragic that the strings of US foreign policy are being pulled by these immoral Democrats.
Ohev his job. Thats all.
Biden is the head of a political party with two factions, and he needs both of them to have a good chance of reelection. One faction includes many secular Jews, even some frum Jews, and a great many people who are outraged at anyone advocating the murder and rape of Jews — and the other faction open advocates rape, murder and genocide of Jews. Biden believes he can get support from both, without alienating the other. At his age, such a belief is reasonable.
Ignore the rants of kapo quislings and let no one be fooled. Brandon has shown his true anti-Semitic colors over the past two months. First, by not vetoing U.N. Resolution 2728, then pressuring Israel against attacking Rafah, then withholding vital intelligence and weapons to prevent them from doing so. This worthless turd has repeatedly stabbed Israel in the back and now wants to pretend he didn’t do so by making empty promises.
May he and his enablers burn for eternity, along with their beloved Hamas.
1 billion to US contractors and a push in the Jewish vote
1. Lev Melachim Visarim Biyad Hashem. Period.
2. The tremendous amount of monetary aid and other support that Biden has given Isreal since October 7th is to be appreciated, and shouldn’t be discounted. To ignore the requirement of Hakaras Hatov becuase his reprehensible behavior the past few weeks isn’t honest.
Other politicians have done far less for the Jews and have yet received not only undying loyalty but also the willingness to excuse anything they do that is not supportive of us.
For the record, I can’t stand Biden. But don’t be dishonest.
LBJ, of course he can veto it, just like any other bill. Why wouldn’t he be able to? How can this bill be an exception? If enough Congressmen want it they can override the veto; but there probably aren’t enough.
Anyone who believes Biden is making any decisions is delusional. Obama’s hand is in all of this. Every time Biden falls while walking up stairs you can almost see a string attached to his foot being pulled by Obama just to get a laugh.