Biden invites key congressional leaders to ‘critical’ meeting on additional national security spending
Fox News
President Biden invited Congress’ top leaders and committee chairs to a closed-door meeting at the White House on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the national security supplemental package, sources confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., are expected to be in attendance on Wednesday.
Biden first requested the supplemental package in October, which would unlock billions in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. But this week, the Senate has other priorities: averting a government shutdown by Friday’s deadline.
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“Tomorrow, President Biden will host congressional leaders from the Senate and the House, along with key committee leaders and ranking members at the White House, to discuss the critical importance of his national security supplemental request,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during Tuesday’s press conference. “So we will certainly have more to say about that meeting tomorrow.”
The supplemental request includes $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel (with $10.6 billion allocated for military aid), $13.6 billion for some border security provisions, and significant investments in Indo-Pacific security assistance, totaling around $7.4 billion. Additionally, there’s $9 billion earmarked for humanitarian aid in Ukraine, Israel and Gaza.
Last year, GOP lawmakers threw a wrench in plans to unanimously pass a supplemental that ties Ukraine and Israel aid together and argued they should be separate. However, Republican lawmakers have now linked the $60 billion additional aid to Ukraine with changes in border security policies as a prerequisite for its passage.