Mike Johnson Defies GOP Critics, Setting Up Ukraine-Israel Aid Showdown

WASHINGTON—House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday he would plunge ahead with a high-stakes vote to move long-stalled funding for Ukraine, Israel and other overseas allies, elbowing aside criticism from his conservative flank.

The move sets up an unpredictable weekend showdown that could determine both the fate of the foreign aid package and Johnson’s political career after navigating months of bitter infighting in the Republican conference.

Democrats were expected to line up firmly behind the aid effort, with President Biden issuing a strong endorsement. But many GOP lawmakers, angered by the lack of border provisions and critical of more aid for Ukraine, planned to oppose the measure, a familiar conundrum for House Republican leaders.

Johnson’s plan comprises four bills—one each for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan and a fourth bill containing many Republican priorities, including a ban or forced sale of TikTok in the U.S. Leaders posted the text of three of the four bills on Wednesday afternoon, laying out a $95 billion aid package that largely matches the price tag and contours of a measure that passed the Democratic-controlled Senate earlier this year.

One major change regards economic support for Ukraine, with the House bill offering $9.5 billion in the form of forgivable loans, rather than grants. Turning some of the aid into loans was a demand of former President Donald Trump, the GOP front-runner in 2024.

A final vote on the House bill is expected Saturday evening.

Johnson took the leap Wednesday as his political powers—always limited because of his narrow majority in the chamber and reliance on Democrats to pass key legislation—were at a new low. On Tuesday, a second GOP lawmaker signed on to a motion to remove the Louisiana Republican from the speaker job, and some lawmakers said they believed his career in leadership could be effectively over, whether now or at the end of the term.

For the package to pass this weekend, Johnson will likely need significant Democratic votes, just as he did on a series of bills to avoid government shutdowns in recent months. He also faces more outspoken threats to his speakership, with a second lawmaker, Rep. Thomas Massie (R., Ky.), saying this week he would back a motion submitted by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.) to remove him from the post.

Republicans remained divided Wednesday. Johnson’s approach, unveiled earlier in the week, didn’t include any border-policy provisions, angering many conservatives.

Johnson spend Tuesday and Wednesday meeting with Republicans from all corners of his conference. In announcing he was moving ahead with the aid package, Johnson said the House would vote on a separate border measure that contained portions of Republicans’ signature H.R. 2 bill, which passed the House last year. The outcome of that vote won’t have any effect on the foreign-aid plan, and critics said it didn’t satisfy their concerns.

Johnson “is surrendering the last opportunity we have to combat the border crisis,” the hard-line House Freedom Caucus posted on social media. Rep. Andy Ogles (R., Tenn.), a member of the group, said “Ukraine can go panhandle for money somewhere else.”

Johnson has said for weeks he planned to lay out his long-stalled proposal on foreign aid, months after the Senate passed its measure that wrapped together money for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and humanitarian efforts. Congressional leaders of both parties and Biden had urged Johnson to take up the Senate bill, but he opted for a different approach to try to work around sharp disagreements in the GOP over further aid to Kyiv.

The House effort gained new urgency after Iran launched a wave of more than 300 drones and cruise and ballistic missiles toward Israel last weekend, while conditions in Ukraine have continued to deteriorate in the country’s third year of trying to repel a Russian invasion.

Biden, who also praised the inclusion of humanitarian aid for Gaza, said passing the package would “send a message to the world: We stand with our friends, and we won’t let Iran or Russia succeed.”

Democrats were also working on a backup plan to tee up a discharge petition, which would force the Senate bill onto the House floor. Still, the petition maneuver needs a majority of the chamber, rarely works and was last used in 2015.

Ahead of Johnson’s announcement, Republicans who support sending aid to Ukraine were threatening to sign the Democrats’ petition, according to people familiar with the discussions, and Democratic leaders were encouraging members to reach out to GOP colleagues. Nearly all Democrats have signed the petition.

GOP proponents of the aid money had said Johnson should stand firm on his original proposal, as attaching any immigration policy provisions wouldn’t pass in the Senate.

“He’s letting 20 guys on the right divert him,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R., Neb.), a defense hawk, about Johnson’s challenges. He said Republicans have resisted joining Democrats on their discharge petition, but Bacon said “the dam is ready to break.”

Polls show more Republican voters think the U.S. is doing too much for Ukraine, while controlling illegal immigration is a top issue for voters headed into the fall elections. Still, many GOP defense hawks are eager for the aid to pass, and they are growing more anxious as Russia advances further into Ukrainian territory.

Ukraine is struggling to muster more men for the war effort and its stockpiles of air defense missiles are being depleted by an intensifying Russian campaign of missile and drone strikes targeting power plants and other civilian infrastructure.

Ukraine’s commander in chief, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskiy, said last week that the situation along the front line had deteriorated significantly. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told PBS this week that Russia was firing 10 shells for every one of Ukraine’s, warning the situation was untenable. “Can we stand like this? No,” he said.

Johnson’s push for Ukraine aid has energized critics. Greene, a close Trump ally, filed a motion to vacate last month, which could lead to Johnson being ousted. The previous speaker, Kevin McCarthy, was removed when Rep. Matt Gaetz (R., Fla.) used the procedure last year, ultimately leading to the election of Johnson. Greene hasn’t called for a vote.

Most members indicated they oppose sending the House into tumult to choose a new speaker.

“Calling a motion to vacate right now is like sacking your own quarterback in the red zone,” said Rep. Burgess Owens (R., Utah) on social media.

Write to Natalie Andrews at [email protected], Katy Stech Ferek at [email protected] and Isabel Coles at [email protected]