Senate Border Bill, Which Would Have Tightened Border Security, Fails After Resistance from Senate Republicans
The Senate Border Bill, which has bipartisan support, was scrapped yet again. This is after some Republicans' despite the bill's popularity in their base.
Senate Democrats, led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, sought to prove that the second rejection from Senate Republicans underscored their politicking and hypocrisy.
Republicans have hampered the popular bipartisan bill for the first time after former President Trump spread unfounded claims that the bill would have made the border weaker.
"We gave Republicans a second chance to show where they stand," the New York Democrat told reporters after the vote. "Do they want to fix this so-called emergency or do they want to show blind allegiance to the former president even when they know he's wrong?"
With a narrow majority in the Senate, Democrats are seeking to show that Republicans are resisting popular measures for political gain, blocking popular bills so that Democrats and President Joe Biden would not look good come the November 2024 election.
Schumer also plans to introduce a bill that would protect access to contraception in June later this year. He added that this would "show the public who's on what side, and in June, we're going to spend a significant amount of time talking about reproductive rights."
The bill itself is popular despite not passing, especially as immigration and border security have already become among the top issues of this year's election. Republicans have been blaming the Democrats for the lack of border security, but with the bill, Democrats managed to flip the narrative and showed that Republicans are not willing to support such measures they had been espousing as they would be a boon for the opposing party.
Bipartisan Border Bill Would Have Been Rejected by the House Had It Passed
Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Senate Republican, was the only GOP senator who voted for the bill during the second try. However, if it had managed to pass the Senate, it wouldn't have been approved in the House, as far as House Speaker Mike Johnson was concerned.
"Should it reach the House, the bill would be dead on arrival," Johnson said in a statement.
Schumer shot back, saying, "At the end of the day, the American people deserve political leaders who will work towards bipartisan solutions and that is what we are prepared to do in the United States Senate this coming week."
What Would the Bipartisan Senate Border Deal Have Done If It Passed?
The bill was originally a compromise between the Republicans and Democrats over funding for Ukraine. Democrats agreed to tighten border security funding in exchange for Republicans agreeing to send aid to Ukraine, which is currently being invaded by Russia.
The border bill would have reformed asylum laws, hired thousands more border patrol agents, and helped tackle fentanyl smuggling. Donald Trump, fearing it would conflict with his claims that Biden and the Democrats are doing nothing with the border, pressured Republican lawmakers to kill the bill.
READ MORE: Russia Spreading Disinformation About US Border Crisis To Undercut Ukraine Aid
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Rick Martin
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