House passes key foreign aid package

The TikTok office in Culver City, California, is pictured on March 13.

House lawmakers have once again passed legislation that could lead to a nationwide TikTok ban, renewing a massive threat to the company’s US operations.

Here’s what we know, and how it could affect you:

Didn’t the House vote on something like this recently?

Yes. In March, House lawmakers approved a bill that would give TikTok roughly six months to sell or the app would be prohibited from US app stores and from “internet hosting services” that support it.

What makes this bill different?

Instead of a six-month deadline, TikTok would have roughly nine months, which could be extended by President Joe Biden by 90 days if he determines there’s been progress toward a sale. Also, the bill has now been inserted into a larger foreign aid package, which makes it much harder for lawmakers to oppose the measure.

Could the Senate vote on the foreign aid package without the TikTok language?

Senators could try to strip out the TikTok legislation, but policy analysts view it as unlikely, as quickly approving the foreign aid is a top congressional priority.

What does this mean for my use of the app?

If the Senate votes to approve the TikTok legislation, it heads to the desk of Biden, who endorsed the prior version of the bill and may quickly sign any foreign aid package that includes similar language targeting TikTok.

In theory, that would start the 270-day clock for TikTok to find a buyer. If it can’t separate from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, then users could be cut off. But that is still a big “if.”

The US Capitol is seen in Washington, DC, on Saturday.

The House on Saturday passed a key package that provides aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific region, while also addressing GOP legislative priorities, such as sanctions on Iran and a potential ban on TikTok.

Here’s what you need to know:

It’s a $95 billion package

The package could lead to a TikTok ban

How the House voted on each measure

What happens next

Speaker Johnson’s job is safe, for now

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesperson for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, voiced strong condemnation of the US House’s approval of a $26 billion aid package for Israel, claiming the funding will directly correlate to the increasing number of Palestinian casualties, according to a statement published Saturday by WAFA, the official Palestinian agency.

Abu Rudeineh criticized the support, claiming it gives Israel the green light to broaden the war across the region and undermines the prospects for regional and global stability.

“US security aid [to Israel] constitutes a dangerous escalation and aggression against the Palestinian people,” Abu Rudeineh added.

Nineteen members of the House Progressive Caucus who voted against further aid to Israel said Saturday that “we make ourselves complicit in this tragedy” if Congress continues to supply military assistance amid the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

More than 34,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the Israel-Hamas war began in October, according to the Ministry of Health there.

The statement also called for a ceasefire in Gaza, more humanitarian aid to be delivered, and peace talks to begin.

“When faced with the question of whether to provide offensive aid to further this conflict, we believe there is a moral imperative to find another path,” the statement said.

These are the 19 progressive members who voted against the measure: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Nydia Velázquez of New York; Joaquin Castro, Lloyd Doggett and Greg Casar of Texas; Pramila Jayapal of Washington; Ro Khanna, Mark Takano, Barbara Lee and Judy Chu of California; Becca Balint of Vermont; Jim McGovern of Massachusetts; Earl Blumenauer of Oregon; Hank Johnson of Georgia; André Carson of Indiana; Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey; Jesús García and Jonathan Jackson of Illinois; and Jill Tokuda of Hawaii.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks to the media at the seventh gathering of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany, on March 19.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday celebrated the House’s passage of a $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific.

Austin added that the package of bills will “save lives” and that the “world is watching” what the United States does.

Ukrainian servicemen told CNN the US House vote to approve military aid provides a much-needed shot in the arm.

An artillery reconnaissance commander who spent two years defending the town of Avdiivka before it fell to Russia in February had a similar message.

“When we feel support from the outside, it motivates us. After all, the military knows it cannot win with sticks and bows and arrows,” he told CNN. “For people who want to defeat the enemy, this news is a great morale booster.”

A foreign aid package passed by the US House of Representatives will “exacerbate global crises,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a statement to CNN on Saturday.

Zakharova said that in addition to the package’s “military aid to the Kyiv regime,” the bills would support Taiwan’s “interference in China’s internal affairs” and allow Israel to continue “a direct path toward escalating unprecedented aggravation in the region.”

Some context: Russia, which is aligned with China and Iran on the global stage, has long painted US aid to Ukraine as American interventionism and an attempt to assert Western influence in the region.

Ukraine has said aid from Washington is critical as it continues to fight back against the full-scale invasion Moscow launched into its territory in February 2022.

GOP Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie railed on House Speaker Mike Johnson and his handling of the foreign aid bills, despite deciding not to move to oust the speaker Saturday.

Greene argued that more House Republicans will support their effort after going home over recess and speaking with their constituents.

Massie, a Kentucky Republican, added that they are giving Johnson the chance to resign, although the speaker has insisted he won’t. Massie added he believes a motion to vacate — a rarely used procedural tool to remove the House speaker — will happen eventually.

“I’m pretty sure one will come to the floor, if he doesn’t resign at some point, but we’re trying to avoid that,” he said. 

Greene insisted their effort to oust Johnson is gaining momentum, adding that the speaker is “a lame duck.” Rep. Paul Gosar Friday signed on to the effort Friday, becoming the third member to do so.

“If we had the vote today in our conference, he would not be speaker today. He’s already a lame duck, he can’t raise money, everyone knows it,” Greene claimed.

House Speaker Mike Johnson talks to the press after the House passed four foreign aid bills at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on Saturday.

Several swing-district House Republicans praised Speaker Mike Johnson for pushing forward with the foreign aid bills and attacked his detractors.

Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro, a vulnerable New York freshman lawmaker, told CNN’s Manu Raju that after speaking with his constituents, “It is clear to me that there are moments in time where we must do the right thing, and today we did that.”

He defended Johnson for waiting for months to hold votes on aid for critical allies Israel and Ukraine, saying the speaker had to build bipartisan consensus in “a very complicated Congress.” Molinaro said he hoped Johnson’s detractors do not attempt to oust him, warning them that Congress is not “only supposed to do what they want.”

Rep. Jen Kiggans, a vulnerable Republican from Virginia, also praised the speaker.

Kiggans criticized the GOP hardliners who have pushed for Johnson’s ouster over the foreign aid package, saying, “It frustrates me when we have members of our conference who are isolationist; who don’t believe in standing with our allies.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer took procedural steps Saturday for the Senate to begin voting on the House-passed foreign aid package Tuesday afternoon.

The chamber was supposed to be in recess next week, but it is coming back to pass this legislation.

Daniel Ingram protests outside the Capitol in Washington, DC, on Saturday.

As members of Congress streamed out of the Capitol after passing an aid bill to Israel, a crowd of protesters with loudspeakers shouted, “Congress, Congress you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide!”

The bill also includes aid to Gaza, but the protesters represent the divisive nature of providing support to Israel amid the humanitarian disaster in Gaza.

Marione Ingram protests outside the Capitol.

Marione Ingram, 88, and her husband, Daniel Ingram, 93, were among the protesters. Marione is a survivor of the Holocaust and large-scale bombing operations in Germany during World War II.  

Pro-Palestinian protesters have been resorting to ever-louder tactics – such as shutting down the Golden Gate Bridge during Monday’s morning commute – as they try to shake US support for Israel and draw attention to the crisis in Gaza, where more than 34,000 people have died since the war began, according to the Ministry of Health there.

A number of lawmakers who backed the aid packages today said their views on House Speaker Mike Johnson as a leader changed after the speaker put bills on the floor despite a threat against his job. 

House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, said he thinks it was a transformative moment for Johnson as a leader, adding that the speaker’s stock in the conference has gone up even as he faces the threat of an ouster from a minority of members.

Meanwhile, Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois was blunt when asked whether he had a new respect and view of the speaker than he did two weeks ago.

GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska said he always thought Johnson would get there but a turning point came when the speaker was briefed that passing Ukraine aid by April was essential.

House Speaker Mike Johnson talks to the press after the House passed four foreign aid bills at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on Saturday.

Moments after the House passed four foreign aid bills totaling $95 billion, Speaker Mike Johnson said he had not spoken to Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries about potentially saving his job if his hardline colleagues move to oust him.

Walking toward his office, Johnson told reporters that he believes he will still be speaker in November and that he hasn’t spoken to any of his detractors Saturday.

Johnson said the “world is destabilized” and “a tinderbox,” stressing the importance of the bills’ passage in a “dangerous time.”

“Three of our primary adversaries, Russia, and Iran, and China, are working together and they’re being aggressors around the globe,” Johnson said. “They’re a global threat to our prosperity and our security. Their advance threatens the free world, and it demands American leadership. We turn our backs right now, the consequences could be devastating.” 

The White House on Saturday clinched urgent foreign aid after a monthslong saga that involved starts and stops in Congress and was momentarily upended by one of the most politically vulnerable issues for President Joe Biden: border security. 

The ask for additional aid to Ukraine, among other priorities, dates to October, when the White House put forward its national security supplemental funding request. Over the last several months, Biden has framed the need to provide additional funds to the war-torn country as a national security priority, warning that no ground should be ceded to Russia.

More recently, US officials attributed losses on the battlefield in Ukraine to the lack of additional assistance from the United States. In February, for example, the White House laid the blame for Ukraine’s withdrawal from the key town of Avdiivka squarely at the feet of Republicans in Congress. 

Funding for Ukraine was also a recurring topic of discussion between Biden and global leaders as the US sought to reaffirm its leadership on the world stage — a theme echoed in the president’s statement Saturday. 

“Today, members of both parties in the House voted to advance our national security interests and send a clear message about the power of American leadership on the world stage. At this critical inflection point, they came together to answer history’s call, passing urgently-needed national security legislation that I have fought for months to secure,” Biden said. 

TikTok criticized the House’s passage of a bill that could ban the app in the US.

President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign event in Philadelphia on Thursday.

President Joe Biden said in a statement Saturday that the House passage of foreign aid bills sends a “clear message” about America’s leadership to the globe. 

“I urge the Senate to quickly send this package to my desk so that I can sign it into law and we can quickly send weapons and equipment to Ukraine to meet their urgent battlefield needs,” he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked the US House for passing the Israel aid bill.

“The US Congress just overwhelmingly passed a much appreciated aid bill that demonstrates strong bipartisan support for Israel and defends Western civilization. Thank you friends, thank you America!” Netanyahu said on social media.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz also thanked the House, saying he hopes the measure will pass in the US Senate soon “with strong bipartisan support.”

The House has adjourned after passing a foreign aid package that now heads to the Senate.

House Speaker Mike Johnson’s job is safe, for now, after Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she won’t move forward with her motion to vacate — a rarely used procedural tool to remove the House speaker — on Saturday. She said she wants her GOP colleagues to “go home and hear from their constituents.” 

The House is not expected back until April 29 after a one-week recess. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at a press conference in Berlin on February 16.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a post on X that he is “grateful” for House lawmakers for passing the measure that provides aid to Ukraine, personally thanking Speaker Mike Johnson “for the decision that keeps history on the right track.”

“Just peace and security can only be attained through strength,” he added.

Watch Zelensky praise the US:

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Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly argued that House Democrats should not save Speaker Mike Johnson’s job, telling CNN that the only speaker he wants is Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. 

Connolly, a Virginia Democrat, noted that voting to save Johnson’s job would mean voting to save a speaker who they have major policy disagreements with, saying the Louisiana Republican’s record is “antithetical to every core value” Democrats hold.

However, Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who is running for governor of Virginia, expressed an openness to saving Johnson.

A battery of Israel's Iron Dome air defense system is pictured near Jerusalem on Monday.

The House passed the Israel Security Supplemental with a vote of 366-58.

Here’s what the package includes:

It would also:

Democratic lawmakers wave Ukrainian flags after the House passed the Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act.

The House passed the Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act with a vote of 311-112. One member – GOP Rep Dan Meuser – voted present.  

Democrats cheered and waved Ukrainian flags during the vote.

The $95 billion package contains $61 billion for Ukraine and regional partners.

One of the bills would provide nearly $61 billion to assist Ukraine and others in the region fight Russia – about the same that was included in the Senate bill.

Of that total, about $23 billion would be used to replenish US weapons, stockpiles and facilities, and more than $11 billion would fund current US military operations in the region. 

Nearly $14 billion included in the bill would help Ukraine buy advanced weapons systems and other defense equipment. 

The measure received unanimous support from Democrats, while Republicans were split. Among House GOP leadership, Whip Tom Emmer, Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise voted for Ukraine aid, while Conference Chair Elise Stefanik voted against it.

Here’s how House members voted on the measure:

Republicans:

Yes: 101

No: 112

Present: 1

Democrats:

Yes: 210

No: 0

Several House Republican hardliners said they are still opposed to ousting Speaker Mike Johnson, despite their frustration after he brought a foreign aid package to the floor, though Rep. Lauren Boebert warned the effort is “gaining momentum.” 

Rep. Troy Nehls said it was “a slap in the face to America” for Johnson to not stick with his demand for border security policy changes in exchange for Ukraine aid.

“What he’s showing is that, in my humble opinion, we are allowing Chuck Schumer to run the House of Representatives, and to me that’s very disturbing,” he added, referring to the Democratic Senate majority leader.

However, Nehls argued there is no alternative to Johnson at this point. “Who’s gonna want the job, but who could do it?”

House Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green agreed, noting that he was disappointed in today’s foreign aid bill votes, but that he still won’t support removing Johnson. “It’s not a failure of leadership, but it’s a difference of opinion,” he said.  

The House passed the Indo-Pacific Security Supplemental bill with a bipartisan vote of 385-34 plus one present vote: Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib. 

Here’s what the package includes:

The Senate bill contained very similar provisions to bolster security in the region.

The House passed the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act with a bipartisan vote of 360-58.

The bill includes national security priorities, including sanctions on Iran, the seizure of frozen Russian sovereign assets and a measure that could lead to a nationwide ban of TikTok. 

Here’s what the bill would do:

Remember: The House is also voting on three separate bills to provide foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific region. If the bills pass the House, the legislation will be combined into one amendment before being sent to the Senate. 

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna listens to reporters in Washington, DC, on April 19.

Republican Florida Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Matt Gaetz rejected the idea of ousting Speaker Mike Johnson on Saturday. 

Asked by CNN whether he believes there should be a motion to vacate — a rarely used procedural tool to remove the House speaker — Gaetz said, “No.”

Rep. Matt Gaetz speaks to a reporter in Washington, DC, on April 19.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise doesn’t think Johnson is going to lose his job due to putting the foreign aid package on the floor, which was advanced by the help of Democrats. 

“I don’t think so,” Scalise told reporters. 

He also said, “I don’t think so,” when asked whether he believes there will be a motion to vacate today. 

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks with reporters in Washington, DC, on April 17.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries continued to dodge on whether House Democrats would be willing to help save Speaker Mike Johnson from a potential ouster led by members of his own party.

Asked for his message to his caucus ahead of Saturday’s votes on foreign aid, Jeffries said, “Let’s get this done for the good of the American people.”

Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman also would not say Saturday whether he would be willing to offer a vote to save Johnson.

Pressed on whether Johnson’s role in advancing foreign aid bills would make Goldman more willing to save him, the New York Democrat said, “Everyone on our side recognizes that in the face of significant opposition and threats from extortionists on the extreme MAGA wing of his party that he has stood up to do the right thing because he recognizes that Congress and the House must govern.”

Rep. Richie Neal, a Democrat from Massachusetts, told reporters it was “premature” to answer whether he’d save Johnson.

House Speaker Mike Johnson walks toward the House Chamber at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on April 20.

Speaker Mike Johnson walked to the House floor without commenting on efforts from GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to oust him from leadership. 

When asked whether he expected a motion to vacate — a rarely used procedural tool to remove the House speaker — Johnson did not respond and continued to walk to the floor. 

Asked by CNN whether he sees the attempt by Greene as an empty threat, Johnson did not comment.

A TikTok logo is seen displayed on a smartphone screen.

House Republicans have slipped TikTok legislation into the foreign aid package in hopes that it forces the Senate to a quick vote on the measure.

While three of the four measures in the package focus on aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific, the fourth bill could lead to a ban of the popular social media app, which has links to China.

If passed, the app’s Chinese parent, ByteDance, would have nine months to sell the social media company. If it misses the deadline, TikTok would be banned from US app stores. However, the measure authorizes President Joe Biden to extend the deadline by another 90 days if he determines there’s been progress toward a sale.

Remember: The House in March passed TikTok legislation, which gave ByteDance roughly six months to sell the company. Some senators had then expressed concern that the deadline may have been too short.

House Speaker Mike Johnson talks with reporters about his proposal of sending crucial bipartisan support to aid Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on Wednesday.

After months of resisting putting a foreign aid bill on the House floor, Speaker Mike Johnson finally moved to advance a package this week, drawing ire from some hardline members of the Republican Party who are now supporting an effort to oust him.

Three House GOP members have said they will support a motion to vacate the speaker: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene — who leads the effort — Thomas Massie and Paul Gossar. Greene could move to oust Johnson as early as Saturday.

Remember: House Republicans have a razor-thin majority and Johnson would need Democratic support to save his speakership. Johnson has maintained that he will not resign.

This is the second motion to vacate in nearly six months. The attempt to oust Johnson comes just months after former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was removed from the top leadership post in early October. Such efforts reveal the divide among House Republicans as they look to expand their majority in November.

Read CNN’s Stephen Collinson’s analysis on how doing “the right thing” may cost Johnson his speaker’s gavel here.

CNN’s Melanie Zanona, Annie Grayer, Manu Raju, Lauren Fox, Haley Talbot, Melanie Zanona and Michelle Shen contributed to this post.

Israel's Iron Dome air defense system intercepts rockets launched from Gaza on October 11, 2023.

The House is set to vote Saturday on a nearly $95 billion package, which includes three bills that aim to provide aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific Region.

Here’s what’s included in the bills, according to a summary provided by House Republicans earlier this week:

Nearly $61 billion for Ukraine

More than $26 billion for Israel

More than $8 billion for Indo-Pacific security

The US Capitol is seen in Washington, DC, on Tuesday.

The House is set to vote on a foreign aid package Saturday after the chamber voted Friday to bring the measures to the floor for a vote.

More Democrats than Republicans voted in favor of advancing the package — a blow to House Speaker Mike Johnson, who faces intraparty efforts to oust him over the measure, which provides aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific Region.

The House package is similar to a bill passed by the Senate in February, except House Republicans added a fourth bill that includes other GOP priorities, including sanctions on Iran and a measure that could lead to a TikTok ban.

Following passage in the Senate, Johnson said he would not bring the measure to the floor. While President Joe Biden for months has been urging Congress to work together to pass the measure, particularly stressing how critical aid is to Ukraine, Trump signaled opposition before the Senate vote, saying the US should stop providing foreign aid unless it is structured as a loan.

Since then, Johnson’s position has changed in light of “precipitating events around the globe,” the speaker said Monday. Last weekend, Iran attacked Israel, escalating regional tensions over the war in Gaza.

CNN’s Melanie Zanona, Manu Raju, Annie Grayer, Haley Talbot and Clare Foran contributed to this post.