Biden's Oval Office Speech to Make Case for Ukraine, Israel Aid Package

President Biden's support for Ukraine faced growing opposition from conservative Republicans in Congress before war broke out in the Middle East. Now Biden's support for Israel is drawing growing criticism from progressive Democrats.

In his Oval Office speech Thursday evening, Biden will have to find some way to appeal to both sides as he makes the case that backing Ukraine and Israel is in the national security interests of the United States.

Biden is expected to use the primetime address to press Congress to provide $100 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and funding for border security in the United States.

"Biden's challenge is to rally the country to stand up for our friends and our values. Not because we're suckers or its charity, but because it's in our national interest," Daniel Fried, a former U.S. ambassador to Poland and assistant secretary of state for Europe, told Newsweek.

On the surface, the war in Ukraine launched by Russia and the Israel-Hamas war started by the militant group's Oct. 7 attack on Israel have little in common.

But Biden can connect the two conflicts by stressing the need for the United States to come to the defense of a democratic ally under attack, said Daniel Byman, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The world "faces threats from aggressive major powers and terrorist groups, and the U.S. has traditionally been a leader in the fight against both," Byman told Newsweek.

Including aid for both countries in a single spending package—along with border security funding, a top Republican priority—also has a more practical purpose.

The White House is betting that pro-Israel Republicans who don't support more Ukraine aid will have no choice but to back Biden's plan in order to show their support for Israel in its war with Hamas.

"It gives those [Republicans] who are pro-Israel and under political pressure to oppose aid to Ukraine an excuse" to support a funding package that includes more aid to Kyiv, Byman said.

Biden's speech comes at an inflection point for Ukraine and the escalating war in Israel.

Biden traveled to Israel Wednesday to show solidarity with Israelis and press the country to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The coastal territory controlled by Hamas is under siege as Israel prepares for a likely ground invasion. The high-stakes diplomatic mission paid off, as Israel agreed to allow some humanitarian aid into Gaza from Egypt.

But Biden's visit was clouded by a deadly explosion at a hospital in Gaza that killed scores of Palestinian civilians. Israel and Hamas traded blame over the blast, and the incident sparked an outcry from Palestinian supporters, progressive Democrats in Congress and others concerned about the rising death toll in Gaza.

The incident underscored Biden's challenge in standing by Israel while also urging the country to limit civilian casualties in the war.

On Ukraine, Biden warned weeks ago that the United States was running low on military aid funding to help Kyiv continue defense against Russia.

Ukraine enjoys broad support among Democrats and most Republicans in Congress, but a growing number of conservative lawmakers in recent months have balked at providing more assistance to Kyiv.

The issue was a major sticking point in budget negotiations last month that nearly caused a government shutdown and helped spur the ouster of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

The House has been paralyzed since McCarthy was voted out as speaker, making it impossible for Congress to pass legislation. Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, a conservative Republican and co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, failed this week in two votes to garner enough support from the GOP conference to become speaker.

It is unclear at this time whether Jordan will try again or whether House Republicans will explore other options, such as expanding the powers of the temporary House speaker, Republican Representative Patrick McHenry of North Carolina.

The House chaos spells uncertainty for Biden's Ukraine and Israel aid package. His Oval Office address is an opportunity to break through the logjam and appeals to both parties, Fried said.

"What [Biden] needs is a message that works for all of them," he said.

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