WASHINGTON — The proposed global security funding law, which includes sweeping bipartisan updates to immigration policy, faced opposition Monday from members of both parties, particularly Republicans angered by the Biden administration's handling of border security, charting a turbulent path for the Passed in the Senate this week.
The immigration deal, negotiated for months by a bipartisan trio of senators, aims to curb migration at the southern border. After it was introduced Sunday evening, it sparked bipartisan anger in both chambers, with some Republicans saying it would not force the Biden administration to take further action and some Democrats arguing it would undermine the asylum system.
U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Senate Republicans' campaign arm, accused the Biden administration of rolling back Trump-era immigration policies.
“President Biden could have secured the border on day one of his presidency and chose not to, and the disastrous results speak for themselves,” the Montana Republican said in a statement.
President Joe Biden told reporters Monday that the bill would give him the tools he needs to control the border.
His critics call the border “out of control,” he said.
“Guess what? “Everything in this bipartisan bill gives me control, gives us control,” he said during a campaign stop in Las Vegas.
The bill “still meets the needs” of people who want to immigrate legally, he added.
The bill's supporters, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, urged critics to accept the deal.
“This bipartisan agreement is not perfect, but given all the dangers facing America, it is the comprehensive package our country needs now,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said on the Senate floor Monday.
A procedural vote is scheduled for Wednesday, which Schumer called “the most important (vote) the Senate has taken in a long time.”
Although Schumer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Republicans of Kentucky, support the immigration deal and the $118.28 billion supplemental package to support Ukraine, Israel, the Indo-Pacific region and U.S. border security, many senators express displeasure with the deal nearly 400-page bill was released late Sunday.
The immigration deal was negotiated by the White House and Senators James Lankford, a Republican from Oklahoma, Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, and Kyrsten Sinema, an independent from Arizona.
The changes would include raising the hurdle for migrants to apply for asylum, establishing a temporary procedure for closing the border during particularly active periods and ending the practice of allowing migrants to live in the United States while they Among those waiting to hear their case is an immigration judge.
“Our immigration laws have been weak for years,” Lankford said in a statement on Sunday. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to close our open border and give future governments the powerful tools they need to stop border chaos and protect our nation.”
The Senate will consider the immigration reform and global aid package as a single bill after Senate Republicans insisted on tying the additional aid package to policy changes at the southern border.
Many Senate Republicans oppose the deal
Several Republican senators spoke out against the package less than 24 hours after it was introduced.
On Ohio's Vance has already said they won't vote for the package.
Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee instead called for passage of a far-right immigration bill that the House passed last year, known as HR 2. This bill would restart construction of a barrier along the southern border and restore Trump-era immigration policies.
Republican Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska said in a statement that she would not support the bill because it was “insufficient” to secure the border.
In an appearance on Fox News on Monday, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin expressed displeasure with the immigration bill, which he said “appears to be even worse than we feared.”
Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britt said in a statement that she does not support the bill because of the president's current immigration policies at the southern border.
“At every step of the way, President Biden has made it clear that he does not want to end the border crisis — he wants to enable it,” she said. “Ultimately, this bill would not effectively prevent President Biden from implementing that very agenda, and I will not support it.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, is pushing for a process to add amendments “to try to improve the bill,” he said in a statement. He added that if changes were not allowed, “the bill will fail because of the procedure.”
“Like many others, I am open to the steps we can take to make the bill stronger,” Graham said. “This can only be achieved through the change process.”
Even Maine Senator Susan Collins, a moderate in the Senate Republican caucus, did not indicate whether she would support the package.
In a statement, Collins, the top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, said she was pleased that her provisions to expedite work permits for migrants were included in the immigration section of the amendment.
The union representing about 18,000 U.S. Border Patrol agents has supported the bill.
Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, said the bill's enforcement provisions “will give U.S. Border Patrol agents codified legal authority that we have not had in the past.”
“While the 2024 border law is not perfect, it is a step in the right direction and far better than the current status quo,” Judd said.
Latino Democrats are also protesting
In addition to the bill's critics, two Latino Democratic senators spoke out against the bill on Monday. They argued that it contains many far-right policies reminiscent of the Trump administration and does not provide a path to citizenship for undocumented people brought to the country as children and often referred to as Dreamers.
“Much of this legislation reads like an enforcement wish list from the Trump administration and is in direct contradiction to the most fundamental tenets of our asylum system,” New Jersey Democratic Senator Bob Menendez said in a statement.
California Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla said he strongly supports funding for foreign military and humanitarian assistance in the bill, “but not at the expense of dismantling our asylum system while ultimately failing to alleviate the challenges at our border.”
The global security supplement includes $60 billion to support Ukraine in its war against Russia; $14.1 billion in aid to Israel; and $10 billion in humanitarian assistance “to provide food, water, shelter, medical care and other vital services to civilians in Gaza and the West Bank, Ukraine and other populations in conflict zones around the world,” it said in a summary.
The prospects in the House of Representatives are worse
Republicans in the House of Representatives, who have a slim majority in that chamber, have already poured cold water on the package.
Hours after the bill's release, House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote on X that the Senate bill “immediately arrived in the House.”
“I’ve seen enough,” the Louisiana Republican said. “This bill is even worse than we expected and will not come close to ending the border disaster the President has caused.”
Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, who has filed articles of impeachment for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, said in a statement that he will “vehemently oppose any agreement that in any way legitimizes or normalizes illegal immigration.” .” ”
A House vote on Mayorkas' impeachment could come as early as Wednesday amid disagreement among House Republicans over southern border policy.
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