Tipsheet

Even John Cornyn Has 'Serious Concerns' With Border Bill

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  February 05, 2024 7:00 PM

As Townhall has been covering at length, there are plenty of reasons to be concerned with the border bill that was finally released on Sunday night. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has spoken positively about the bill, which certainly adds credibility to complaints about how much influence the uniparty has. It turns out that the bill is so egregious, though, that even McConnell's allies, like Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), have concerns.

Breitbart covered that hesitation on Monday morning. "Now that I have seen text, I have questions and serious concerns," Cornyn said in a statement to the outlet. This comes even after he had been supportive of the months-long negotiations. 

Cornyn still has yet to come out fully against (or for) the bill, though. Bob Hoge at our sister site of RedState highlighted more comments the senator made according to other outlets, including the San Antonio Express-News. As the outlet mentioned:

Cornyn later told reporters in San Antonio that he is still reading the bill and has not made a decision on how he will vote. He said that if it makes "incrementally a better situation ... that's something I think I should consider."

"My biggest apprehension is that, given the fact that President Biden has not used the current laws that are in effect, I worry that he will do this with this new set of proposals," Cornyn said, according to the Texas Tribune.

The package is expected to get an initial Senate vote Wednesday and needs to draw support from 60 senators to clear a filibuster. President Joe Biden urged the Senate to pass the bill, saying it includes "the toughest and fairest set of border reforms in decades." 

That President Joe Biden is among those in support is a particularly concerning sign. It's worth reminding that Biden has the authority to enforce the crisis at the southern border, though he refuses to do so. Instead, he insists that he needs a bad bill like this one to do so. Not only does Biden refuse to use his authority to enforce the law, but he issued an executive order immediately upon taking office that terminated the emergency. 

Nevertheless, many are taking Cornyn's reservations about such as disastrous bill as a hopeful sign. 

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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has expressed support for the bill, and has even claimed that failure to pass it, as it provides funding for Ukraine and Israel as well, could put American lives at risk. It's currently set to receive a vote on Wednesday. 

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has long expressed concerns about the bill, and declared the bill "dead on arrival" over a week before the text was even released, based on rumored concerns. Now that the text has been released, Johnson and other members of House Republican leadership have maintained their opposition and that the bill is indeed "DEAD on arrival" when it comes to the Republican-controlled House. 

Based on what's known about the meeting that Republican senators have been in that started at 6pm, it certainly seems like Cornyn is not alone in his opposition.