President Joe Biden appeared to promise a border deal only for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to stop it in its tracks.
On Friday, Biden touted negotiations with the U.S. Senate on a bill he calls the "toughest and fairest" set of reforms possible, adding that he will "shut down the border" the day he signs it. The president also urged Congress to support a bipartisan package that would tie border security measures with aid to Ukraine.
However, earlier in the day, Johnson said such legislation would be "dead upon arrival" in the House.
Biden said the bill would give him the authority to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border when it becomes "overwhelmed. " So, in other words, the president does not think the ten million plus illegal immigrants who have already entered the U.S. is enough of a crisis for him to close the border.
According to Reuters, the White House agreed to place new limits on asylum at the southern border. This would include Biden having expulsion power that would allow illegal migrants who cross the border to be immediately returned to Mexico if migrant encounters surpassed 4,000 per day. However, those numbers have already exceeded this, with more than 9,500 migrant encounters recorded in December alone.
On the contrary, Johnson sent a letter to Senate members, saying that the bill has no chance if House Republicans believe the legislation does not do enough to address the historic record of illegal aliens crossing into the United States.
"I wanted to provide a brief update regarding the supplemental and the border since the Senate appears unable to reach any agreement. If rumors about the contents of the draft proposal are true, it would have been dead on arrival in the House anyway," Johnson wrote. "I am emphasizing again today that House Republicans will vigorously oppose any new policy proposal from the White House or Senate that would further incentivize illegal aliens to break our laws."
The Biden Administration has requested over $100 billion in funding, including $14 billion for the border and $60 billion for Ukraine aid. Republicans and the White House have faced disagreements as the GOP demands limits to be placed on illegal migrant releases into the U.S.— including the use of parole.
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