WH says Congress will likely need to okay more aid for Israel

White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby says existing appropriations are enough for the US to deliver emergency aid to Israel and Ukraine.

However, Kirby says at a press conference that “we’re running out of runway” and will likely need Congress to allocate additional funds based on Israel’s needs.

He indicates that this is complicated by the lack of a House speaker and overall chaos in the Republican Party.

Republicans have nominated Rep. Steve Scalise to be the next House speaker but are struggling to unite behind him.

It’s unclear whether Scalise can amass the votes that would be needed from almost all Republicans to overcome the Democratic opposition. Usually, the majority needed would be 218 votes, but there are currently two vacant seats, dropping the threshold to 217.