House Speaker Mike Johnson defended his approach to the supplemental foreign aid funding in an interview on Wednesday after the bill text showed a strong similarity to the bipartisan Senate measure. Johnson had announced on Monday that the House would consider separate bills to provide aid for Israel and Ukraine, in response to demands from the far right to keep the issues distinct.
However, Johnson also indicated that there was a possibility of combining the bills in the future. Republican leaders could still take procedural steps to send all the pieces as one package to the Senate, a move that might upset the right wing of the House GOP conference. Johnson later confirmed that he would indeed combine the foreign aid bills before sending them to the Senate.
Addressing the threats to remove him from his position, Johnson emphasized that he does not dwell on the motion to vacate. He described it as a procedural matter that has been misused in recent times. Johnson expressed a willingness to consider potential changes to this process but emphasized the importance of focusing on his responsibilities and those of his colleagues.
