The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Friday to advance a nearly $100 billion foreign aid package, with its four bills scheduled to be voted on individually this Saturday.
The package of bills passed through a procedural hurdle with a final vote of 316-94, with 165 Democrats and 151 Republicans voting in favor, which will now allow for a full House vote on the different provisions this weekend, according to The Washington Post.
Should the House vote to pass the four bills, they will be combined into a single amendment and sent to the U.S. Senate, as reported by CNN.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who has continually voiced his support for the package, said after the vote that he was pleased with the outcome.
“Even though it’s not the perfect legislation, it’s not the legislation that we worked, [that] we would write if Republicans were in charge of the House, the Senate and the White House, this is the best possible product that we can get under these circumstances, to take care of these really important obligations,” he said, as reported by CBS News.
Although the bills advanced with a majority of representatives voting yes, many Texas representatives have been split on whether they believe the bill should be passed.
Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said on Thursday that he would prefer the House tackle the southern border before passing legislation for other countries, noting that House Republicans seem to be moving away from previous leverage.
“We’ve let every single funding bill get across the floor without securing the border of the United States with a promise to use Ukraine as leverage with the administration to guarantee a secure border,” he said, according to The Texas Tribune.
“And here we are completely running away from that promise. Well, not on our watch. We’re going to throw everything we have at stopping this foolish capitulation by Republican leadership.”
On the other hand, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) joined Reps. Mike Turner (R-OH), Mike Rogers (R-AL), Tom Cole (R-OK), Ken Calvert (R-CA), and Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL) in a joint statement urging the House to pass the legislation.
“There is nothing our adversaries would love more than if Congress were to fail to pass critical national security aid. Speaker Johnson has produced a plan that will boost U.S. national security interests in Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific,” it reads.
“We don’t have time to spare when it comes to our national security. We need to pass this aid package this week.”
While the official vote is not currently scheduled to occur until sometime on Saturday, the heavy majority vote in favor of the bill on Friday would suggest that the House of Representatives will pass the legislation.
