WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing fierce criticism from conservatives, Senate Republicans on Monday resisted pushing forward a bipartisan proposal aimed at cracking down on illegal border crossings that is likely to be defeated in Congress. , suggesting that leaders may not have a clear path to approving wartime aid. For Ukraine.
In a dramatic development, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, who is not authorized to speak publicly about the meeting, advised Republican senators in a closed session Wednesday to vote against the first procedural vote. According to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.
It came just hours after the Kentucky Republican told his colleagues on the Senate floor that “now is the time for Congress to act.” But Mr. McConnell has struggled to organize a meeting to support a package of policies. $118 billion package On border security policy and funding for Ukraine, Israel, and other U.S. allies.
Senate negotiators on Sunday Knight released the text of the bill in hopes that the details would win over skeptics. The carefully negotiated deal represented a rightward shift in Senate negotiations on border measures, but opposition from conservatives remained strong. They blasted border policy proposals, led by former President Donald Trump, as insufficient.
“This is a gift to the Democratic Party. And this is putting the worst border in history on the shoulders of the Republican Party,” Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, said Monday on “The Dan Bongino Show.” Told. “They want this for the presidential election so they can blame the Republicans for the worst border in history.”
President Joe Biden speaks to reporters after visiting Las Vegas No. 1 Boba Tea on Monday, February 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarborough)
Many Senate Republicans returning to the Capitol on Monday expressed doubts about whether they would support moving forward with the policy, including some who have expressed support for aid to Ukraine and the outline of changes to border policy. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Important test vote Wednesday.
“The actions here over the next few days are a turning point in history,” the New York Democrat said in a floor speech. “The security of our country and the world is at risk.”
Mr. Schumer worked closely with Mr. McConnell on border security policy after Republican leaders touted the combination as a winning formula. Support for Ukraine aid. Democratic leaders urged their colleagues across the aisle to “turn off the political noise” and vote yes.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D.Y.) answers questions about border security talks during a meeting with reporters after the Democratic caucus at the Capitol on Wednesday, January 31, 2024 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“For years, our Republican colleagues have been demanding that the border be fixed. And they've always said it should be done by law. Actually introducing a bill. It was only recently that they changed it when it seemed like a possibility,” Schumer said.
But Republicans expressed deep disagreements about the bill. During a 90-minute closed-door meeting Monday night, their discussion turned into shouting.
“Time out!” Iowa State Sen. Joni Ernst, a retired lieutenant general from the Iowa Army National Guard, said in one exchange. “Don't worry!”
Republican senators said they were unlikely to vote to advance in Wednesday's test vote and wanted to discuss changes to the bill, a request that would further delay final action on the bill.
“I think Wednesday's vote is too early for most members,” said South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the second-ranking Republican.
Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi, predicted Wednesday's tally would fall short of the required 60 votes. “I think this proposal is dead,” he told reporters after leaving an earlier meeting with other Republican leaders.
Mr. McConnell and Mr. Schumer have been emphasizing for months that: Tens of billions of dollars need to be approved urgently He supported the fight in Ukraine, saying America's ability to strengthen democracies around the world was at stake. However, due to funding stalls in Congress, the Pentagon halted shipments of ammunition and missiles to Kiev.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has already Biden said the proposal would be “dysfunctional on arrival” if it passes the Senate, but he urged the Republican chairmen to “pay attention to what's going on in the Senate.”
Biden told reporters at a meeting with members of the Culinary Union in Las Vegas that Congress had not approved his funding request for more Border Patrol agents and immigration agents to keep up with the number of migrants. He pointed out that there was no. “I need help,” he said. “Why aren't they helping me?”
The White House also said Biden would veto a House bill that would send only military aid to Israel, calling it a “cynic” bill that would eliminate funding for Ukraine, the border and other national security needs. It was criticized as a “political maneuver.”
Johnson, along with other top House Republican leaders, said in a joint statement Monday. oppose the bill Because “it fails in every policy area necessary to secure our borders and actually encourages more illegal immigration.”
A statement from Rep. Johnson and Reps. Steve Scalise, Tom Emmer and Elise Stefanik pointed to a provision in the bill that would give work permits to immigrants who qualify for the asylum system. They also argued that it would support a “catch-and-release” policy in which immigrants who enter the asylum system are placed in monitoring programs while they wait for their asylum claims to be finalized.
Under the proposal, immigrants seeking asylum would face a tougher and faster process before their claims are considered. The bar for the first interview has been raised, with many people being interviewed within days of arriving at the border. A final decision on their asylum claims will be made within months, instead of the years it currently takes.
The National Border Patrol Council, the union representing Border Patrol agents, announced Monday that it supports the proposal and would eliminate illegal border crossings nationwide. The group supported President Trump in 2020 and has been highly critical of President Biden's border policies.
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), the Senate's top Republican negotiator on the border and foreign aid package, gives a television news interview at the Capitol on Monday, February 5, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
But House Republican leaders said it would be a “waste of time to consider this Senate bill in its current form.”
Still, the lead Republican negotiator on the bill, Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma, implored his colleagues to reconsider the bill and even expressed openness to restarting negotiations.
“Work is currently underway,” he told reporters. “So I'm not going to have a funeral for this. The House has already had a funeral.”
Some Democratic lawmakers also oppose the bill, taking issue with its restrictions on asylum seekers. Immigration advocates also said the bill would cut off important due process rights for people who have fled to the United States to escape often horrific violence.
But Democrats generally favor the idea of tougher border measures.
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the lead Democratic negotiator on the bill, said: “This country needs to do something to stop fighting over immigration, improve border controls and fix our broken immigration system. I think they are crying out for us to accomplish this.” ”
___
Associated Press Las Vegas writer Darlene Superville and Kevin Freeking in Washington contributed.
