It’s rare for Members of Congress to face “clean” votes; moments when legislation has no add-ons, no hidden agenda, none of the typical Washington clutter. On Saturday, the House of Representatives faced one of those votes.

A Simple Choice

Last week, we all watched in horror as Iran attacked Israel, but we were elated to see that Iran’s efforts were fruitless against the Israeli military’s defensive capabilities and those nations including the U.S., U.K., Saudi Arabia, and Jordan who aided in protecting the Jewish state.

On Monday, 250 ministry and community leaders gathered in Washington for an emergency fly-in hosted by CUFI. The gathering was focused on addressing the to-that-point failed state of House efforts to advance aid to Israel.  

CUFI founder and Chairman Pastor John Hagee as well as CUFI Action Fund Chairwoman Sandra Parker met with House Speaker Mike Johnson on the sidelines of the fly-in’s opening dinner, during which Speaker Johnson delivered a powerful address.

“We need your help. Israel is being abandoned by more and more people – even some in the United States Congress – and that’s a great shame,” said Speaker Johnson.

“Weakness is too costly. Strength will ultimately save us and ensure peace. We must not hesitate. We must not waver. We must confront the darkness of terrorism, guided by the light of freedom and our faith in God,” he continued.

Alongside Speaker Johnson, CUFI’s top leaders also heard from Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), among the most unshakeable friends of Israel in Congress today.

“The waiting is over... The time is absolutely now to get this security package over the finish line. We need your help,” said Representative Gonzales.

The next day, the CUFI delegation met with elected officials in Congress and delivered a clear and unequivocal message of support for emergency aid to Israel.

“The only politicians who represent our 10-million-member organization are the ones who stand with Israel. If you are not for Israel, we are not for you,” declared Pastor Hagee.

The Grassroots Engage

Following the emergency fly-in, CUFI launched an Action Alert calling upon House members to support both the rule enabling a vote on the Israel bill and support the Israel aid bill itself.

Nearly 65,000 people responded to the alert, and in the end, when the vote on the Israel aid bill took place, it passed with 366 Republicans and Democrats voting in favor.

By allowing separate votes on each of the component parts of the package, Johnson was able to achieve overwhelming bipartisan majority support for the national security package being considered and expected to pass in the Senate this week. Ultimately, America was put first on Saturday by the overwhelming majority of the House as a direct result of the honest and humble leadership of House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Unfortunately, there are those who disagree with the above quite vehemently. They view any bipartisanship as by definition a worse outcome. They have forgotten that even if one believes politics is a zero-sum game, governance is not. And if one only governs to win and to acquire more power, they betray their constituents and have no business anywhere near any power – let alone more.

There is no legitimate excuse for voting against the aid to Israel and believe us when we tell you we heard them all), which 37 Democrats and 21 Republicans did.

This was the most significant vote in defense of Israel (and frankly democracy writ large) in years, and our job is to bring you the information and then together, we do something about it.

The Israel Security Supplemental is the single largest military package for Jerusalem since its modern founding. Once passed by the Senate this week and signed into law, Israel will have the resources to continue the fight and the resupply for critical missile defense systems to ensure millions of Jews, Christians, and Muslims in the Holy Land will be safe from the evils of Iran and its proxies.

Below is the list of Members of Congress who sided with America’s and Israel’s adversaries this past Saturday.

Sincerely,

The CUFI Action Fund Team