BREAKING NEWS: Speaker Johnson Speaks To Reporters After Foreign Aid Passage, GOP Revolt

well good afternoon everyone uh the house has worked its will these are not normal times here in the house or around the world as we all know and we saw had a disturbance here on the house floor uh just a bit ago uh I just want to say simply what I think most people around the country uh understand and agree we should only wave one flag on on the house floor and I think we know which flag that is um I said these are not normal times they're not uh the world is is destabilized and it's a Tinder Box it's a it's a dangerous time uh three of our primary adversaries Russia and Iran and China are working together and they're being aggressors around the globe and they're a global threat to our prosperity and our security their Advance threatens the Free World and it demands American leadership if we turn our backs right now the consequences could be devastating so this afternoon the house acted and we sent over to the Senate and it will be transmitted shortly our supplemental National Security legislation and make no mistake this is not a blank check like the Senate supplemental bill was this is very different instead of taking the pass path of leas resistance and U bringing up the Senate supplemental on the house floor or just allowing a discharge petition to pursue which come forward which would have had the same U same outcome we gave our members a voice we gave them a chance we gave them a better process and ultimately a much better U policy unlike the the Senate's blank check the house legislation has a number of very important features it provides for greater accountability over Ukraine Aid it forces an in-game strategy for the Ukraine war it includes a lan instrument of this foreign aid to Ukraine and the repo act to ensure that Russian assets pay for part of the bill and on like the Senate's Bill the loan system itself is a house Innovation and allows for much needed Insight now remember that 80% of the Ukraine funding will go to the replenishment of American weapons and stocks and uh our facilities and our operations it also includes tough measures and sanctions on Iran and Russia and China which most of the American people understand is a necessity and a very important thing our process in the end ensured that each member was able to consider the individual supplemental elements on their own merits which is exactly how the house is supposed to work I know there are critics of the legislation I understand that it is not a perfect piece of legislation we're not insured that in a time of divided government and U in a time where there are lots of different opinions but there is no question whatsoever that the house has made many strong improvements to the Senate bill and the product that we've sent over there is much better this package I will note because it's very important also includes National Security priorities and many of them but it is the only way that we could have gotten Democrats to support Aid to Israel and that's a fact uh there is a lot of misinformation out there about the bill and I just want to make one point about one issue that has been uh drawn a lot of attention and that is could any of this funding go to Hamas or to uh terrorist organizations or what have you and we put safeguards in the legislation to ensure that umra is not funded the UN agency that included terrorists who participated in the October 7th um uh attack on Israel uh We've also have language that prevents it from going any of the funding going to Hamas or any other Bad actors that's a very important element of oversight Congress takes the oversight very seriously and we will continue uh to keep an eye on every dollar uh that that we are using and investing at this time I've said it very simply I'll say it once again it's an old military adage but we would rather send bullets uh to the conflict overseas than our own boys our troops and I think this is a an important moment an important opportunity to make that decision we allowed the house to do that and I expect the Senate will make the same decision one or two questions your about that and do you plan to if it's brought no listen I I as I've said many times I don't uh walk around this building being worried about a motion to vacate I have to do my job we we did I I've done here what I believe to be the right thing and that is to allow the house to to work its will and as I've said you do the right thing and you let the chits fall where they may I will continue to do that grave step but at the same time why you it took too long for Aid to Ukraine and maybe uh too long why you decided to do it right now uh listen that the house had a lot of important work to do here we had to get the government funded in our Appropriations process we had to uh reauthorize the foreign intelligence surveillance act we had a lot of important measures that had to be done and we got to this as quick as we could um this is an important matter I think it's it's timely I think you've heard from leaders around the world including in Ukraine that this is um this has being done on a timely basis and and the house had to have the time to deliberate and and do this in the right manner um I I I think we we did our work here and I think uh history will judge it will Mr Speaker you're being asked to resign you're being asked to resign will you thank you everyone

Channel: Forbes Breaking News

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Length: 5min 27sec (327 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 20 2024