Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday that Republicans will push for a \u2018number of changes\u2019 regarding border security in President Biden\u2019s requested emergency supplemental funding package.<\/p>\n
McConnell said Israel and Ukraine aid should not be split up, but combined in a \u2018comprehensive\u2019 package since both are a \u2018worldwide issue\u2019 that correlate with other countries that pose a threat to the U.S., like China and Russia.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s pretty clear that the supplemental that was set up is just a starting place,\u2019 McConnell told reporters following the leadership conference\u2019s weekly luncheon. \u2018We\u2019re going to go over it with a fine tooth comb, as you can see is a lot of passion among our members without having a credible border security provision in there, and we\u2019re going to make other changes as well.\u2019<\/p>\n
McConnell said Sen. Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., has been meeting with a group of lawmakers to come up with a more \u2018credible border proposal.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u2018I can tell you what, it probably will not be sending a bunch of money to Chicago and New York,\u2019 McConnell said. \u2018We want to do something about the problem, the problems at the border.\u2019<\/p>\n
When it comes to coupling Israel and Ukraine \u2014 which has received pushback among GOP lawmakers more skeptical of Ukraine aid but supportive of Israel \u2014 McConnell said White House officials \u2018feel that this is a worldwide problem and needs to be dealt with entirely, not in pieces.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u2018Our members now that we have the package are scrubbing it for recommended changes\u2026 except for the fact that it\u2019s worldwide, I think it\u2019ll end up having a number of Republican changes,\u2019 he added.<\/p>\n
The Biden administration\u2019s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sent Congress an emergency supplemental funding package request \u2014 totaling $106 billion \u2014 to aid Ukraine and Israel and to increase security at the southern border on Friday morning.<\/p>\n
The funding proposal includes $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel (with $10.6 billion allocated for military aid), $13.6 billion for border provisions (including measures to combat the flow of fentanyl and speed up asylum processing) and significant investments in Indo-Pacific security assistance, totaling around $7.4 billion. Additionally, there\u2019s $9 billion earmarked for humanitarian aid in Ukraine, Israel and Gaza.<\/p>\n
But the border provisions quickly drew criticism from Republican lawmakers, who argued the funds would not stop the flow of migrants entering the country, but rather make the problem worse if there are no policy changes, like restoring Title 42.<\/p>\n
\u2018The border funding that is included is all designed to accelerate the processing of illegal immigration,\u2019 Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told Fox News in an interview Friday. \u2018In other words, it\u2019s not designed to stop the crisis at our southern border. It\u2019s designed to make it worse.\u2019<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Tuesday morning he would be urging \u2018strong bipartisan support\u2019 to get the supplemental package across the finish line in the next few weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Bipartisanship must lead the way as we take up the president\u2019s supplemental request,\u2019 Schumer said. \u2018To my Republican colleagues, let\u2019s work together to ensure that this process remains bipartisan, because only things that win support from both sides will make it to the president\u2019s desk.\u2019<\/p>\n
On Tuesday afternoon, Schumer said of Republicans\u2019 qualms on tighter border security in the package: \u2018We are not for policy changes.\u2019<\/p>\n