The US Senate Unveils a $118 Billion Bill That Combines Aid for Israel and Ukraine with Border Policies

$60 billion in support for Ukraine and $14.1 billion in security assistance to Israel are included in the national security supplemental legislation.

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After months of discussions, the US Senate on Sunday released a bipartisan $118 billion border security bill that would also aid Israel and Ukraine. This launches a long-shot attempt to advance the law in the face of strong opposition from Republicans, such as House Speaker Mike Johnson.

"The harshest and fairest set of border reforms in decades are part of the bipartisan agreement that we have reached. It also offers humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people and supports Israel and the Ukraine. In a statement, President Joe Biden urged Congress to approve this legislation right away.

60 BILLION DOLLARS FOR UKRAINE
Senate Appropriations Committee chair Patty Murray published a synopsis of the national security supplemental legislation that contains $14.1 billion in security assistance to Israel and $60 billion in help for Ukraine. In addition, Democratic and Republican negotiators agreed on a number of improvements to immigration policy, including $20.2 billion for US border security.

Humanitarian aid for people in Gaza, the West Bank, and Ukraine would cost an extra $10 billion. In addition to $2.33 billion for Ukrainians displaced by Russia's invasion and other refugees escaping persecution, the US would donate $4.83 billion to support important regional allies in the Indo-Pacific area, where tensions between Taiwan and China have increased.

RESISTANCE FROM BOTH PARTIES
Despite resistance from both sides of the aisle, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stated he will move to schedule a preliminary vote on the bill on Wednesday. The measure, according to US Senator Kyrsten Sinema, an independent, would safeguard the southern border by mandating that the Department of Homeland Security close the border if, over the course of seven days, there are more than 5,000 attempts per day to enter the border.

In a statement, Schumer stated, "The priorities in this bill are too important to ignore and too vital to allow politics to get in the way." "Aggressors who aim to subvert democracy and amplify authoritarian power globally present the United States and our allies with a number of intricate, sometimes coordinated challenges." According to Schumer, new procedures will be implemented to offer "faster and fair" immigration determinations, and additional frontline staff and asylum officers would be hired.

Leading Senate Republican Mitch McConnell has backed the talks, claiming Republicans wouldn't receive a better deal with a Republican administration. Though they had previously advocated for legislative action, some House Republicans have stated that Biden can implement many of the reforms they desire to immigration law by executive action.

In October, Biden had asked Congress to approve a bill that would have increased funding for help to Israel, Taiwan, and Ukraine as the country attempts to fend off Russian forces in the wake of Hamas raids in Israel on October 7 and the ensuing conflict. The demand of House Republicans that this request be linked to a change in immigration policy caused it to stall. The second most common worry among Americans, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Wednesday, is immigration. In fiscal year 2023, the US Border Patrol apprehended around 2 million migrants at the border. Trump has focused a significant portion of his campaign on opposing immigration. He is the front-runner for the Republican nomination to run against Biden in November.