Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday that the Senate will vote next week on a long-delayed bill that would stiffen security at the U.S. border and provide additional military aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
Although there are still some final details to work out, the bill is “very close” to completion, Schumer said on the floor of the Senate, adding that the text of the bill could be released as soon as Friday and no later than Sunday, with a vote occurring by Wednesday. A procedural vote on the bill is scheduled for Monday.
Schumer’s announcement comes amid growing concerns about the viability of the legislative package, which lawmakers have been working on for months. Axios reported Wednesday that Senate negotiators were “on the verge of abandoning” the bill, but Schumer’s announcement indicates that the most severe disagreements have been overcome, or at least appear to be solvable.
Still, even if the bill can get through the Senate, it faces daunting odds in the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson has declared it is “dead on arrival.” House conservatives say that any bill Democrats are willing to agree to probably won’t be tough enough on border policy for their liking, and a growing number of Republicans are expressing doubts about providing more aid to Ukraine.
Some Democrats may hesitate to back the bill, as well, with Rep. Raúl Grijalva of Arizona saying the border provisions appear to be too punitive. “Right now my instincts are not to support it,” he told The Hill. “I’ve never supported what I hear is in there.”
