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Trump, House GOP Leaders Reject Senate Border-Ukraine Deal

Trump, House GOP Leaders Reject Senate Border-Ukraine Deal
The US Capitol in Washington, DC.

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump and House Republican leaders denounced a bipartisan Senate deal to impose new US border restrictions and unlock billions of dollars in Ukraine aid, endangering its prospects for passage.

Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republican leaders in a joint statement Monday declared the Senate compromise “a waste of time” and “dead on arrival” in the House.

Trump condemned the deal in a social media post Monday as “a great gift for Democrats and a Death Wish for The Republican Party.” He also flatly rejected tying immigration to foreign aid.

Read More: Tougher Enforcement, More Visas: Inside the Senate Border Deal

In the Senate, deep divisions formed among Republicans, who plan to meet on the deal later Monday.

Senator John Cornyn of Texas, a senior Republican from a border state, said Monday he had “questions and serious concerns” about the border deal.

GOP Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina demanded changes to the legislation, which would threaten to upset the hard-fought compromise. The head of the Senate GOP campaign arm, Steve Daines of Montana, said he will vote “no.”

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and his Republican counterpart Mitch McConnell both back the $118.3 billion compromise, announced Sunday night. They’re planning a first procedural vote on the measure on Wednesday, but the rising GOP opposition and resistance from progressive Democrats like California Democrat Alex Padilla could sink it.

The legislation would crack down on illegal border crossings, make it harder to apply for asylum and speed up deportations of undocumented migrants but also open up more visas for legal immigration.

The deal, which includes $60 billion for Ukraine, was negotiated over several months by Democrat Chris Murphy, Republican James Lankford and Independent Kyrsten Sinema. It also includes $20 billion for the border, $6 billion more than the Biden administration requested.

Read More: Senators Reach Deal on Ukraine Aid, US Border

Under the proposal, the Department of Homeland Security would be able to turn away most asylum-seeking migrants at the border whenever encounters reach 4,000 daily for a week. At 5,000 daily average encounters in a week — or 8,500 on any single day — the administration would be required to turn away migrants.

The threshold levels are far below current migration flows. US Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 302,000 total encounters along the US-Mexico border in December alone.

The bill also would make it harder to qualify for asylum in the US by tightening the criteria for a successful application based on credible fear of persecution and would limit the release of migrants into the country, keeping more border-crossers in detention or on a fast track to deportation.

Johnson and many other Republicans demand more restrictive US immigration policies in exchange for approving the Ukraine aid. A Biden request for $14 billion to assist Israel in its war in Gaza also has been delayed by the struggle over immigration.

Read More: US Defense Industry Would Get $35 Billion Boon in Senate Deal

President Joe Biden said Sunday he “strongly” supports the compromise, adding it would give him new authorities to “shut down” the border to stem migration. He also said the deal would make the asylum process “fairer and more efficient” and expedite work permits for those who qualify.

“If you believe, as I do, that we must secure the border now, doing nothing is not an option,” Biden said in a statement.

The US Chamber of Commerce endorsed the deal, but the business lobby’s influence on the GOP has waned. Ultraconservatives are pressing for a House-passed wish list of immigration proposals, including completion of a border wall.

Trump has urged Republicans hold out for a “perfect” deal, an aggressive stance aimed at scuttling the effort.

That would make it easier for Republicans to keep pummeling Biden on an issue that resonates with voters.

Six in 10 swing-state voters say Biden bears responsibility for a surge in migrants crossing the US-Mexico border, according to a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll. The influx is straining the resources of Democratic strongholds like New York and Chicago.

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