Former President Trump’s push to kill the border deal in order to deny President Biden a legislative win is upsetting members on both sides of the aisle as negotiators hope to wrap up work on an agreement within days.
Trump had been the sleeping giant in the background of talks, but his wins in Iowa and New Hampshire, coupled with his recent remarks calling for Republicans to oppose any border package short of H.R. 2, have complicated the path forward for the Senate.
Lawmakers say they are worried that killing the deal would be a major disservice given the situation at the border and in Ukraine.
“If politics get in the way of this — if Donald Trump who wants to help his friend [Russian President Vladimir Putin] with Ukraine and wants to keep the border alive as a major issue — if that prevails, that would be a really horrible disposition to all this,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) told reporters.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) called the effort “appalling.”
“But the reality is that we have a crisis at the border, the American people are suffering as a result of what’s happening at the border, and someone running for president ought to try to get the problem solved as opposed to saying, ‘Hey, save that problem. Don’t solve it. Let me take credit for solving it later,’” he told CNN’s Manu Raju.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), however, believes it could backfire on the former president and could cause some “resentment” among Senate Republicans who are interested in backing the eventual deal.
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Former President Trump’s push to kill the border deal in order to deny President Biden a legislative win is upsetting members on both sides of the aisle as negotiators hope to wrap up work on an agreement within days. @alweaver22 reports for The Hill: https://t.co/elBm0WPYbQ
— The Hill (@thehill) January 25, 2024
Sen. Tillis lets loose on Rs bending to Trump on border/immigration/Ukraine deal: “It’s all about politics and not having the courage to respectfully disagree with President Trump … I didn't come here to have a president as a boss or a candidate as a boss."
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) January 25, 2024
It's really disgusting, and I am sick at heart. These are United States Senators saying, 'No, we won't do our job because Trump told us not to.' US Senators, who have given away their authority to this jerk who is not even an office holder. https://t.co/EHngm9zd19
— JoeReynoldsChief (@JoeReynolds2020) January 25, 2024It's hard to overstate the degree of cynicism motivating Trump and his allies here. I think even a lot of people who profess to "hate politics" would be shocked if they understood how much of the dysfunction in institutions like the Senate is by design. https://t.co/bCHlWUIo2A
— McKay Coppins (@mckaycoppins) January 25, 2024
White House stays the course on border talks — despite Trump’s interference https://t.co/1Y6Xj69rw8
— POLITICO (@politico) January 25, 2024
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