WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives failed Saturday to pass a border security bill that Republican leadership had intended as an incentive for conservatives to support a foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
The border bill, which was defeated by a vote of 215 to 199, was moved to passage under a fast-track process known as a suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds majority to pass. The conservatives to appeal to called it a “show vote.”
Five Democrats, Donald G. Davis of North Carolina, Jared Golden of Maine, Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, Mary Peltola of Alaska and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, voted for the bill with all Republicans present.
The border security bill – almost identical to the one House Republicans passed last year – was an attempt by House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana to quell growing far-right discontent fueled by his support for the $95 billion Dollar development aid package was triggered, which is expected to be passed on Saturday with the help of the Democrats.
The measure is separate and not part of a package of three supplemental funding bills that include aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, as well as another so-called sidecar bill on TikTok. The Senate will be able to approve the foreign aid package and ignore the border security bill, which is similar to another border bill passed by the House of Representatives that the Senate has not acted on.
Instead of quelling their unrest, Johnson's move only sparked more anger among far-right members. Three Republicans — Marjorie Taylor Greene of Rome, Georgia, Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Paul Gosar of Arizona — are already backing a move to oust Johnson through a motion to resign.
During floor debate on Friday, Democrats argued that the bill, HR 3602, was a rewrite of HR 2, a bill that House Republicans passed last year that would reinstate Trump-era immigration policies such as construction of the border wall would. Both bills would also require asylum seekers to remain in Mexico.
Return of the border ticket
Republicans were largely in favor of the border bill, but several called the vote a “sham” and acknowledged the bill would not pass in the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats.
“House Republicans are once again trying to get our Democratic colleagues and President Biden to take this border crisis seriously,” said Barry Moore of Alabama.
The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Jerry Nadler of New York, said the bill was a “foolish attempt to pass one of the most draconian immigration laws this Congress has ever seen a second time.” Joke.”
“Republicans have proven that they want the problem more than they want solutions,” he said. “So here we are once again adopting almost the same draconian bill as before, knowing that if it actually passes in the House of Representatives, it will certainly get nowhere in the Senate.”
Nadler argued that if Republicans were serious about addressing immigration at the southern border, they would have supported the bipartisan border bill in the Senate instead of opposing it.
Three senators – Republican James Lankford of Oklahoma, Democrat Chris Murphy of Connecticut and independent Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona – have spent months drafting a bill that would overhaul immigration policy at the request of Senate Republicans who insisted Border security provisions should be included in the foreign aid package.
But Republicans in Congress backed away from it earlier this year after Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, urged not to support the bill because he is focusing his re-election campaign on immigration.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, argued that the bill “does not fully comply with H.R. 2.”
The bill is nearly identical to H.R. 2, but removes the requirement for employers to verify a worker's immigration status and employment eligibility and provides about $9 billion to border state grant programs.
“Let’s take a step toward fixing the problem and passing this law,” Jordan said of the southern border.
A “deception”
Pramila Jayapal, a Washington state Democrat and chairwoman of the Progressive Congressional Caucus, said the bill was pointless.
“The majority could barely pass this bill last year,” she said, referring to the partisan vote in 2023. “And now it magically passes in the House with a two-thirds majority? Give me a break. This bill accomplishes nothing, so let’s be clear.”
Texas Republican Chip Roy agreed that the bill would not become law and expressed disappointment that Republicans would not try to use foreign aid money to support it.
“Republicans continue to advocate for securing the border and then refuse to use leverage to actually secure the border,” Roy said. “We should get it signed into law, but the only way to force Democrats to do it is through influence.”
Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona also agreed with Roy and Democrats that “this is a show vote.”
Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Scott Perry echoed similar comments but said he would still vote for the bill even if it was “doomed.”
“But I want everyone to know it’s a deception,” Perry said.
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