Negotiators working on a deal combining border policy changes with aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan have made progress, but not enough to suggest that the legislation might be passed before the end of the year.
The White House and a trio of Senate negotiators continue their talks as they try to reach a deal on a $110 billion national security supplemental spending bill that includes border reforms. Senate leaders of both parties said Monday that intensive weekend negotiations had resulted in progress but that much work remained.
“While the job is not finished, I’m confident we’re headed in the right direction,” Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in remarks on the Senate floor. “Finding a middle ground is exceptionally hard, and both sides must accept they will have to make concessions and it’s going to take some more time to get it done. But we must succeed.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell insisted that Republicans would need to see the full details of any deal before voting on it. “There are a number of significant issues our colleagues are still working to resolve,” he said. “Our colleagues at the negotiating table are clear-eyed about the fact that getting this agreement right and producing legislative text is going to require some time.”
McConnell added that Republican negotiators are committed to continuing to make progress “over the coming week and beyond.” But he emphasized the need to proceed carefully and review any deal. “There is simply no room for falling short here,” he said. “We cannot afford to get this wrong.”
What’s next: Lawmakers reportedly have some significant issues to resolve and challenges in doing so in a way that can pass both chambers of Congress. “We do need to be aware of the fact that this is not just an exercise in the Senate,” Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas told “Fox News Sunday.” “It’s not just the Senate and the president agreeing to something. It’s something that can actually pass the House and be signed into law.” And lawmakers on the left and right have already expressed concern about the direction of the talks. Fifteen Senate Republicans on Sunday urged their party leaders to hold a special meeting on January 8 at the earliest to lay out the details of the negotiations, which they called “rushed and secret.”
The bottom line: Any vote on an agreement is likely going to have to wait until mid-January, adding to what’s already looking like a very busy month since the House isn’t scheduled to return until January 9 and some government funding expires on January 19.
