U.S. President Joe Biden on February 6 urged Congress to pass a bipartisan immigration bill that also includes aid for Ukraine as lawmakers face political pressure from Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump to scuttle it.
Speaking from the White House, Biden told lawmakers to pass the measure, which he said includes much of what Republicans have demanded on the immigration matter, and send it to his desk, emphasizing the urgent need to approve the $60 billion in wartime aid for Ukraine included in the measure and stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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“The clock is ticking. Every week, every month that passes without new aid for Ukraine means fewer artillery shells, fewer air-defense systems, fewer tools for Ukraine to defend itself against this Russian onslaught,” Biden said.
Biden called it a critical moment, saying Putin is “betting on” the United States walking away and warning that it would be making a historic mistake if Washington fails to approve aid for Ukraine.
“Supporting this bill is standing up to Putin. Opposing this bill is playing into his hands,” he said. "The world is watching."
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (Democrat-New York) vowed to push ahead with plans to hold a procedural vote on the bill on February 7 after “months of good faith negotiations [and] giving Republicans many of the things they asked for.”
He said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican-Kentucky) and the Republican conference are ready to kill the package "even with border provisions they so fervently demand.”
McConnell, speaking to reporters at the Capitol immediately after Biden’s address, indicated the bill had no chance.
“It looks to me and to most of our members that we have no real chance here to make a law,” McConnell said.
He added that the cost for Americans and U.S. allies and partners will only rise if the aid is not approved.
Biden laid the blame for the bill’s stall in the U.S. Senate at Trump’s feet, saying the former president “thinks it's bad for him politically" and would rather not solve the border issue in order to use it against him in the 2024 presidential campaign.
A bipartisan group of senators announced over the weekend they had reached agreement on the chief parts of the deal to curb illegal crossings at the U.S. border with Mexico. Biden said the bill included “the toughest set of reforms to secure the border ever” and the exact provisions that Republicans asked for just months ago.
Republicans argue that Biden already has all the authority he needs to halt the flow of migrants through the U.S.-Mexico border.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican-Louisiana) said he would not support the measure immediately after Senate negotiators announced it on February 4. Asked on February 6 about the aid for Ukraine and Israel, Johnson told reporters, “We have to deal with these measures and these issues independently and separately.”
The president scheduled his speech after indications that the bill faced almost certain defeat as Republican senators who back Trump signaled their opposition, calling the measure insufficient.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (Democrat-New York) said earlier it was a “gloomy day here in the United States Senate” during a floor speech in which he scolded Republicans for backing away from the deal.
Biden accused Trump of spending the last 24 hours reaching out to Republicans in both the Senate and the House of Representatives to try to intimidate them to vote against the proposal.
“He'd rather weaponize this issue than actually solve it,” Biden said.