Recently, newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson demonstrated his support for Israel amid the ensuing violent conflict between the Jewish nation and Hamas. When speaking with Fox News’ Kayleigh McEnany, Johnson emphasized the need for providing aid to Israel, labeling its conflict with the terrorist group as “a matter of good versus evil.”
The former White House Press Secretary under President Trump questioned Johnson on when a vote could be expected on the proposition of an Israel aid package. The House Speaker indicated he was anticipating the vote to occur soon.
“Let’s talk about one of those areas of common ground, potentially: this Israel aid package, stand-alone Israel aid. The reporting is that there will be a vote, hopefully Thursday. Is that the time that you’re looking at?” McEnany asked. “I’m hoping Thursday,” Johnson replied.
McEnany further inquired if Johnson was expecting bipartisan support behind the initiative, stating, “It looks like $14.5 billion is the number that you’re looking at. And you suggest that maybe you’ll get a bipartisan vote here,” she said. “I sure hope so,” Johnson responded.
While some Democrats have voiced their support for Israel after the deadly attack perpetrated by Hamas, there is a noticeable partisan trend of woke politicians expressing anti-Israel sentiment. This stance has been explicitly demonstrated by members of “The Squad,” such as Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who have drawn criticism over their recent comments.
McEnany questioned Johnson if he expected to receive meaningful support from across the aisle on Israeli aid. The speaker said while he wishes all Democrats would get behind the initiative, he noted some underlying “philosophical differences” with some. He continued simplifying the conflict as a binary “good versus evil,” where some have tried to equivocate both sides.
“Do you have any sense of the number of Democrats who you think might come?” McEnany asked. “I hope that it’s most or all of them,” Johnson replied. “I mean, there’s a few people who have philosophical differences on that and we’ll have some intense debates about their opposition to that. But, look, this is a matter of good versus evil.”
Johnson also explained his desire to reallocate some of the funding originally intended to expand the IRS toward Israel. “My intention and my desire in the first draft of this bill is to take some of the money that has been set aside for the building and the bulking up of the IRS right now. We have about $67 billion in that fund and we’ll try to take the $14.5 necessary for this immediate and urgent need,” Johnson added.
The House Speaker suggested supporting an American ally in the Middle East is paramount to building out a bureaucratic organization that many citizens have disdain for, to begin with.
Johnson continued, “I understand their priority is to bulk up the IRS. But I think if you put this to the American people and they weigh the two needs — I think they’re going to say standing with Israel and protecting the innocent over there is in our national interest.”
In the short amount of time Johnson has assumed the speaker position, he has demonstrated a strong commitment to other conservative values such as faith and God and protecting the Southern Border. See footage below of the Speaker addressing the border crisis.
Speaker Mike Johnson: “We have a catastrophe at our southern border…our streets are being flooded with fentanyl…the status quo is unacceptable.”pic.twitter.com/LqHue9c5Aa
— Immigration Reform Law Institute (@IRLILaw) October 25, 2023
