Trump Vows To Veto House $4.5 Billion Bill To Help Migrants At The Mexico Border

The House of Representatives passed a bill on Tuesday that would provide aid to the crowded and unsanitary detention centers that hundreds of immigrants are being kept in by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). President Donald Trump has vowed to veto the bill, attacking some of its more progressive contents.

Earlier this week the House voted along party lines to pass a bill that would appropriate $4.5 billion towards improving conditions in the various holding centers along the U.S.-Mexico border. Due to infighting between more moderate Democrats and the party’s new liberal wing, the House was forced to include several provisions that would limit the use of the allocated funds. In order to please progressives, amendments were added to ensure better treatment of minors in custody, after reports came out detailing the harsh conditions many children were facing at the hands of CBP. Democrats also put in a requirement that unaccompanied child migrants would only spend three months at a camp unless prior notice was given. Additionally, the bill listed standards for medical care and nutrition so that detainees would receive adequate sustenance.

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The House also tacked on a requirement that contractors fulfill these new standards within six months or risk having their contract revoked. Once this provision was included Rep. Pramila Jaypal (D-Washington), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, agreed to back the bill.

The same additions that brought progressives on board alienated Republicans, who called the amendments “poison pills.” Instead, many GOP members prefer the Senate aid bill, which passed committee but has yet to be fully voted on. That version includes none of the progressive amendments added in the House, and it allocates funds towards overtime pay for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement workers.

These bills come as a request from the White House as the crisis at the border grows increasingly worse. As Trump continues to support deportation, more and more immigrants are being detained in detention centers along the border. CBP has been unable to deal with the large influx of migrants, and as top border officials keep resigning from their posts the situation only becomes worse. Administration officials have warned the public that if a new bill is not passed soon, they will run out of money, further deteriorating the situation at the border.

Article by Daniel Knopf