Senate To Vote Again On Bipartisan Border Bill, Schumer Says

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) has announced that the Senate will vote again this week on a bipartisan border security bill. 

The bill calls for more border security agents and stricter standards for migrants in trying to claim asylum in the United States. The legislation would also introduce more stringent measures to eradicate the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. while granting the president greater authority to close the border.

The first attempt fell short after former President Donald Trump’s call for Republicans to reject the legislation, a political strategy to boost his reelection chances. The bill was initially paired with aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but that package passed earlier this year. The border bill is unlikely to pass in a second vote.

On Sunday night, in a letter to his fellow senators, Schumer wrote that he does not expect all Democrats to vote in favor of the legislation or Republicans to agree with all its provisions. Some progressive Democrats claim that the bill fails to provide immigrants with adequate protections and would disappoint a critical voting block.

In a joint statement on Sunday night, House Speaker Mike Johnson and his Republican colleagues expressed their opposition to the legislation, claiming it would be “dead on arrival” in the House.

In his call to action, Schumer expressed the need for bipartisan solutions to complex problems, such as border control.

If the bill fails, as expected, President Joe Biden is expected to issue executive orders increasing the deportation and detention of individuals entering the U.S. without proper documentation.