Senate presses toward vote on border policies and Ukraine amid Republican backlash
The Senate is pressing forward with a bipartisan proposal intended to clamp down on illegal border crossings, even though it faces a likely defeat in Congress
WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing a torrent of criticism from Republicans, Senate leaders on Monday forged ahead with a bipartisan proposal intended to clamp down on illegal border crossings, even though it faced a likely defeat in Congress that would leave leaders with no clear path to approve wartime aid for Ukraine.
Senate negotiators on Sunday night released a $118 billion package of border enforcement policy and funding for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies, hoping that the details would win over skeptics. The bill represented a rightward tilt in Senate negotiations over border measures, yet the backlash was intense from conservatives. They savaged the border policy proposal as insufficient, with former President Donald Trump leading the charge.
“This is a gift to the Democrats. And this sort of is a shifting of the worst border in history onto the shoulders of Republicans,” Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, said Monday on “The Dan Bongino Show.” "That’s really what they want. They want this for the presidential election so they can now blame the Republicans for the worst border in history.”
Many Senate Republicans — even those who have expressed support for Ukraine aid and the contours of the border policy changes — raised doubts Monday they would support the package. A private Republican meeting was scheduled in the evening to discuss it. Still, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer moved toward a key test vote on Wednesday.
