Biden and Congress Craft $2 Billion Aid Package as Israel Vows to ‘Crush’ Gaza

As Israel prepares to launch a likely ground invasion into Gaza, the Biden Administration and leading members of Congress are crafting an American aid package of roughly $2 billion in supplementary funding to support the nation’s war effort against Hamas, multiple sources familiar with the matter tell TIME.

Biden and Congress Craft $2 Billion Aid Package as Israel Vows to ‘Crush’ Gaza

Previously:

Source of dubious ‘beheaded babies’ claim is Israeli settler leader who incited riots to ‘wipe out’ Palestinian village

Biden Gives Ukraine More Cluster Bombs And Ukraine Operations Will Be Exempt From Potential Government Shutdown

President Biden on Thursday met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and announced a new tranche of US military aid for Ukraine that includes more cluster bombs, which are notorious for killing and maiming civilians.

Biden Gives Ukraine More Cluster Bombs During Zelensky Visit

Related:

Pentagon Exempts Ukraine Operations from Potential Government Shutdown

Zelensky to Beg House Speaker McCarthy for More Taxpayer Money, While Biden Bullies Developing Countries to Betray Russia and China

Zelensky arrived in New York on Monday and will head to Washington after the UN General Assembly

House Speaker McCarthy to Meet With Zelensky This Week

Related:

Biden urges UN to not abandon Ukraine

Biden’s call was part of his long-running theme to rally democracies against the globe’s rising autocracies. On Tuesday, he went further, implicitly urging developing nations to turn their backs on Russia and China’s autocracies and join an inter-connected, rules-based order promoted by the U.S. and its allies.

Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, skipped the general assembly, as did China’s Xi Jinping, but Beijing’s presence loomed large on the east side of Manhattan. While much of Biden’s speech read as a pitch to the developing world, its true subject was China, although the president tried to publicly downplay tensions with Beijing, as he did just weeks ago at the G20.

Joe Biden’s Aid to Hawaii vs Ukraine Aid Compared: What We Know

The Biden administration has been criticized in recent days over the support offered to survivors of the deadly wildfires in Maui, compared to the billions in U.S. aid sent to Ukraine.

Joe Biden’s Aid to Hawaii vs Ukraine Aid Compared: What We Know

WH FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s Latest Actions to Support Communities Impacted by Maui Wildfires

To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has approved nearly $7 million in assistance to nearly 2,200 households, including nearly $3 million in initial rental assistance.

White House Calls for $40 Billion Supplemental

If enacted, the supplemental would provide $24.0 billion of additional aid to Ukraine – on top of the $113 billion the United States provided in 2022 alone. This includes $13.1 billion of military aid and replenishment of Pentagon weapons stocks, $8.7 billion of economic and humanitarian aid, and $2.3 billion to leverage additional aid from other donors through the World Bank.

That’s approximately $137 billion to Ukraine, $10 million, or so, for Hawaii (in soft loans and rental assistance)!