Congressman Cohen Votes Against the Israel-Only Supplemental

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), a senior member of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, today voted against the Republican’s Israel-only supplemental providing funding for Israel. While Congressman Cohen strongly supports Israel and wants to send it what it needs to defend itself and defeat Hamas, this bill is a Republican partisan ploy. The House should instead consider a comprehensive response to U.S. national Security concerns. 

Congressman spoke from the House floor after tonight’s vote, which failed when it did not receive the required two-thirds vote. See that speech here.

Congressman Cohen also made the following statement:

“We urgently need to support Israel and I have consistently voted to do so. But Speaker Johnson’s short-sighted, partisan measure providing aid to Israel alone is unacceptable. What we need is a comprehensive response to our national security concerns that involves Ukraine in its struggle against the invading Russians and Taiwan resisting Chinese aggression, as well as addressing needed humanitarian aid to all the innocent victims of the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

“Speaker Johnson is playing politics with aid to Israel, just as he did with the last bill that offset the assistance with cuts in investments to IRS enforcement efforts that would only benefit the wealthiest tax cheats. That’s blasphemous. And Johnson’s ‘carrot’ for Israel works against its and our interests by depriving those in need in Gaza from humanitarian assistance and making us a pariah in the eyes of the world.

“President Trump is directing Republican policy. He didn’t want to ‘waste’ the border issue, so he scuttled the bipartisan Senate compromise. He wants to support Israel at the expense of Ukraine in revenge against President Zelensky who wouldn’t agree to a quid pro quo for military aid by helping him drum up baseless allegations against Hunter Biden, leading to the first of the Trump impeachments.

“Tonight’s vote is not against supporting Israel but a vote to sideline partisan tricks with the aim of reaching a bipartisan compromise.”

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