House left for its July Fourth recess without voting on Massie's amendment to cut $3.3 billion in Israel aid

The House left Washington for its July Fourth recess without voting on an amendment that would have stripped all Israel funding from the 2027 national security and State Department spending bill, leaving one of the most divisive foreign policy fights in the Democratic caucus unresolved until members return.

The amendment, offered by Representative Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, to H.R. 8595, the National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2027, would bar any funds in the bill from going to Israel and lower the bill's total by about $3.3 billion. That figure matches the annual Foreign Military Financing the United States provides Israel under the 10-year, $38 billion memorandum of understanding signed in 2016. Representative Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, co-sponsored the measure.

How it reached the floor, and why the vote did not happen

The House Rules Committee marked the Massie amendment "made in order" on June 23, clearing it for floor consideration. The floor vote never came. Republicans could not adopt the procedural rule needed to bring the underlying spending bill up for debate, part of a wider revolt among House Republicans tied to the Senate's failure to pass the SAVE Act. With the rule stalled, leadership sent members home early for the recess. Khanna said on X that the vote had been blocked.

Democratic leaders told members to vote their own conscience rather than issuing a whip position, an unusual step that reflected how far the caucus is from agreement on Israel policy.

Where the parties stand

Support for the amendment came mainly from the progressive wing. Representative Greg Casar of Texas, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, backed it and wrote, "The Israeli government committed war crimes in Gaza and helped drag America into war with Iran. Americans should not be financing more weapons for Netanyahu." Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York also said she would support it.

The senior Democrats on the Foreign Affairs and Armed Services committees said they would oppose cutting the aid. Members of the New Democrat Coalition and Jewish Democrats lined up against the amendment as well. Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi, described the intensity of the internal debate to reporters: "I've been around a long time, never seen it."

Republicans are expected to oppose the amendment in large numbers, which, combined with Democratic opposition, would leave it well short of passage if it reaches the floor. Massie and Khanna have said they want the recorded vote regardless of the outcome.

What happens next

The amendment remains attached to H.R. 8595 and is expected to return to the floor when the House reconvenes after the recess, though it depends on Republican leaders first passing a rule to open the spending bill. Until that rule clears, neither the bill nor the amendment can advance.