The White House News

A Republican senator is calling on the Senate Democrats to pass the bipartisan Israel aid bill that the House of Representatives passed earlier this month.

Senator Roger Marshall, R-Ks., will urge his Democratic colleagues in the upper chamber to pass the aid bill for Israel in a speech Tuesday, a draft of which was first obtained by Fox News Digital.

“Since we were last here, Hamas’ leadership has declared its desire for a permanent state of war with Israel on all the borders,” the senator plans to say on Tuesday at 11 a.m.

HOUSE GOP PASSES ISRAEL AID BILL OFFSET BY IRS FUNDING CUTS

“Time is of the essence,” the remarks read. “Right now, there are still hundreds of innocent people being held captive by Hamas terrorists, including approximately 10 Americans.”

Marshall plans to appeal to the Senate Democrats to pass the Israel aid bill and will call on them to “do the right thing and pass this aid for Israel in their time of need.”

“It has been over a month since Hamas’ Army of Terror launched its savage assault on our greatest ally in the Middle East,” Marshall plans to say. “The House sent us a bipartisan solution that has only been met with obstruction from the Senate Democrats in this Chamber.”

“This delay in providing this aid is not lost on Israel, raising questions about our commitment as an ally. And perhaps equally concerning is the message it sends to Hamas terrorists, emboldening them in their murderous endeavors.”

HOUSE GOP PASSES ISRAEL AID BILL OFFSET BY IRS FUNDING CUTS

“Mr. President, America is not a fair-weather friend. We must stand unequivocally with Israel and pass this aid today,” he adds.

Marshall also plans to slam his Democrat colleagues who have “attempted to delay the delivery of this critical military assistance as they call for negotiations with these terrorists and a ceasefire” and called “on each Senate Democrat holding up this bipartisan funding to sit down with a victim of Hamas’ savage attacks.”

“I’d encourage them to listen to their stories of Hamas’ terror that massacred the most Jewish people in a single day since the Holocaust,” the senator’s remarks read.

“I want to make sure it is clear — Hamas’ evil defies all logic, and our hesitation to provide bipartisan funding to our ally is a defiance of commonsense,” he adds.

The bipartisan Israel aid bill passed the House in early November before being shot down by eight Senate Democrats as the bill made its way through.

Senate Democrats sunk the bill last week, citing a lack of Ukraine aid, as well as humanitarian aid, money to combat China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific and border security funding.

Senate Democrats also attacked Republicans over the bill slashing Internal Revenue Service (IRS) funding to pay for the Israel aid, accusing them of slow-walking the aid by tying the IRS cuts to it.

Additionally, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said during a press briefing that President Biden would veto an Israel-only supplemental package if passed by Congress.

“The president would veto an only-Israel bill. I think that we’ve made that clear,” Kirby said during a White House press conference last week.

Kirby’s remarks came as the House prepared to vote on a $14.3 billion Israel-only aid package that ultimately passed.

Fox News Digital’s Adam Sabes contributed reporting.

Four hundred government officials from 40 departments and agencies within President Biden’s administration signed a letter opposing the president’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war and demanded a cease-fire.

The Tuesday letter, first reported by the New York Times, includes officials from the State Department, White House, National Security Council and the Justice Department. The signatories of the letter remained anonymous to protect against professional retaliation.

“We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the letter reads, in part.

Biden and other Western leaders have pushed back on calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, arguing it would only serve to benefit Hamas terrorists. Biden’s administration has instead pushed for humanitarian pauses in the fighting, which Israel has agreed to.

HAMAS TELLS NY TIMES IT HOPES WAR WITH ISRAEL IS ‘PERMANENT,’ PAPER SAYS HAMAS NOT INTERESTED IN GOVERNING

The White House has yet to respond to the letter.

So far, French President Emmanuel Macron is the only major Western leader to call on Israel to implement a cease-fire. He later clarified his remarks on Monday, however, saying he still believed Israel has a right to defend itself.

NEWSROOMS PRESSURED BY PRO-PALESTINIAN LEFT OVER COVERAGE OF ISRAEL WAR WITH HAMAS

The disagreement within Biden’s administration mirrors friction within the Democratic Party regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict. Several radical progressives within Biden’s party have decried Israel as an “apartheid state” and argue the war in Gaza is a “genocide” against Palestinians.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., faced a public rebuke from the House of Representatives for her comments on Israel last week.

Israel’s war against Hamas is coming to a head this week as Israeli forces surround Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip. Israel says Hamas has entrenched its headquarters beneath the hospital.

Fox News’ Gillian Turner contributed to this report

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is warning that Russia and China are cooperating closely with North Korea to mutually expand military capabilities. 

Austin spoke Tuesday during a meeting of defense ministers at a summit for U.N. Command, the international body that oversees and enforces the Korean War armistice.

“We are deeply concerned that the PRC and Russia are helping the DPRK to expand its capabilities by enabling it to evade sanctions from the U.N. Security Council,” Austin told the group of defense officials.

“DPRK” stands for “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” the hermit nation’s official name.

NORTH KOREA CLOSING EMBASSIES AROUND THE WORLD AMID SUSPECTED FINANCIAL CRISIS

“We’re also troubled by the recent growth in military cooperation between Russia and the DPRK,” he added.

Material cooperation between North Korea, Russia and China has been documented by international intelligence agencies and government officials as diplomacy between the three states ramps up.

North Korean manufacturing and aid have been detected in relation to Russian forces amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, while Russian aid has been documented in North Korea’s continued military satellite program.

“Today we have come together to shore up security for the next 70 years and our shared commitment for the defense of the Republic of Korea, and the peace and stability on this peninsula will remain vital,” Austin said.

YOON WARNS SOUTH KOREA, UNITED STATES MUST BE READY FOR ‘HAMAS-STYLE’ SURPRISE ATTACK FROM NORTH KOREA

Austin’s concerns were echoed by South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, who referenced Russia and China as countries that “assisted North Korea during the Korean War.”

“If countries that assisted North Korea during the Korean War decide to support it again, they will face consequences similar to those of North Korea,” said Shin. “This meeting will serve as a powerful warning to countries or groups attempting to reject the international order based on rules and seeking to change the status quo through force.”

North Korea, China and the former Soviet Union were the three belligerents against South Korea and its allies during the Korean War.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol reportedly told Austin both of their nations should be ready for “Hamas-style” attacks from North Korea in the region. 

The warning came when Yoon invited Austin and U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown, Jr. to the presidential residence in Seoul for a meeting over dinner, Yonhap News Agency reported. 

The outlet, citing presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon, said Yoon called for “a vigilant South Korea-US combined defense posture capable of promptly and decisively retaliating against any provocations from North Korea, including surprise attacks resembling Hamas-style tactics due to its miscalculation.” 

Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.