Former President Donald Trump, who is running another White House campaign, encouraged lawmakers on Wednesday to reject a not-yet-released bill that aims to combine border security reforms with aid for Ukraine and Israel.
A post to Truth Social from Trump took aim at one purported section that Fox News reported would establish a threshold of a seven-day rolling average exceeding 5,000 encounters a day to trigger a Title 42-like authority to quickly remove migrants at the border.
“The illegal Aliens that are pouring into our Country are taking over our cities and attacking our police,” Trump said. “They are forming gangs, and they are tough. Close the Border, you do not need a ridiculous Border Bill that will allow 5000 people into our Country a day. Call it the ‘Stupid Bill’ and make sure it doesn’t get passed. It will make things MUCH WORSE. CLOSE THE SOUTHERN BORDER, NO BILL NECESSARY!!!”
President Joe Biden’s request last year for roughly $106 billion in supplemental funds to spend on U.S. allies — including Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan — as well as border security and humanitarian assistance, led to bipartisan Senate talks on attaching immigration reforms sought by Republicans. While Biden has encouraged the endeavor, Trump urged Republicans not to settle on a compromise.
“I do not think we should do a Border Deal, at all, unless we get EVERYTHING needed to shut down the INVASION of Millions & Millions of people, many from parts unknown, into our once great, but soon to be great again, Country!” Trump said in a post to Truth Social earlier this month.
Trump’s sway within Congress is on the rise again following victories in the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. The former president still faces a challenge from former South Carolina Governor and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, but Trump has garnered endorsements from a growing number of Republican lawmakers.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-RY) has been supportive of the bipartisan talks. However, he reportedly told colleagues last week they face a “quandary” as Trump establishes himself as the GOP frontrunner in the 2024 presidential contest. “The politics on this have changed,” he said, according to Punchbowl News, referring to Trump as “the nominee” and stressing, “We don’t want to do anything to undermine him.”
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Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said he has been in contact with Trump and indicated the Senate deal would be “dead on arrival” in the GOP-led House if rumors about it proved true. In particular, he warned on X, “Any border ‘shutdown’ authority that ALLOWS even one illegal crossing is a non-starter. Thousands each day is outrageous. The number must be ZERO.”
Two of the main negotiators in the upper chamber, Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), indicated this past weekend that they were close to finalizing a deal and felt good about the early feedback it was receiving. They also spoke about Trump’s sway in the matter.
Murphy told CNN the “bipartisan deal” may be in jeopardy if Republicans “listen to” Trump and reject the compromise. Lankford told CBS News that he was “looking forward to President Trump having the opportunity to be able to read it, like everybody else has,” and noted there is “a lot of misinformation out there right now.”