Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that during a Sunday call between President Joe Biden and congressional leaders there was “consensus” that Congress needs to act quickly to send aid to both Israel and Ukraine.
Schumer said at a news conference in New York that “hopefully” something can be accomplished this coming week to aid both countries.
Earlier Sunday, Biden spoke to Senate Majority Leader Schumer, House Speaker Mike Johnson, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Schumer said the best way to send aid to Israel and Ukraine is for the House to take up and pass the Senate-approved national security supplemental that includes aid to both countries. The Senate passed the $95 billion package in February, but Johnson has not brought it to the floor for a vote.
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“The best way to help Israel rebuild its anti-missile and anti-drone capacity is by passing that supplemental immediately. As I said, Israel expended about over a billion dollars in defending itself and the security supplemental would replenish the kind of anti-missile and anti-drone defenses that are in the Arrow, in the David’s Sling, and in the Iron Dome,” Schumer said.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said in a statement Saturday that the House would change its legislative schedule this week to “consider legislation that supports our ally Israel and holds Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable,” but it’s not yet clear what legislation that will be, or how drastically it might depart from the Senate-passed bill.
–ABC News’ Allison Pecorin and Rachel Scott
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