WASHINGTON ― The Senate delayed the start of its holiday break on Thursday to allow for more time to reach a deal on President Joe Biden’s emergency spending bill that lawmakers hope will pair U.S. assistance to Ukraine with major immigration reforms.
The upper chamber is expected to return to work on Monday. Meanwhile, the GOP-controlled House recessed and isn’t scheduled to return until Jan. 9, 2024, ensuring that critical military and financial assistance to Ukraine to defend against ongoing Russian aggression won’t be approved by Congress and delivered to Kyiv for at least another month.
“We have to get this done,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) insisted in a speech on the Senate floor on Thursday. “Our Republican colleagues who have said action on the border is so urgent should have no problem with continuing to work next week.”
“We know the world is watching,” he added. “We know autocrats like [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and [Chinese President Xi] Jinping are hoping for us to fail. So we need to try with everything we have to get the job done.”
Senate Republicans have demanded changes to toughen asylum policy and other border measures in exchange for passing Biden’s $110.5 billion aid package, which also includes assistance to Israel and the Indo-Pacific region where Taiwan is located. Those changes are fiercely opposed by progressives and members of the Hispanic Caucus.
Negotiations over sharper immigration limits yielded some progress this week, but senators on both sides of the aisle are skeptical they can finalize an agreement with the administration and pass a bill before Christmas despite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visiting Washington this week to make an in-person plea for continued U.S. aid.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) told reporters that he welcomed efforts by the White House to come to the table, but he expressed skepticism about the Senate being able to pass a bill next week, calling it a “tall order.”
Any deal, if one is reached, will need approval from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and other House Republicans. Johnson hasn’t been involved in the negotiations, many in his caucus are opposed to aiding Ukraine point blank, and they have been preoccupied this week with opening an impeachment inquiry into Biden despite no evidence linking him to his son Hunter’s business dealings.
Schumer on Thursday urged senators to stay in town next week, vowing to schedule a procedural vote on Biden’s emergency spending bill “no matter what.” However, it’s not clear that many Senate Republicans would stick around town for such a vote, either.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) said “no” when asked if he planned to return to Washington on Monday.
“That would be unfortunate. They elected us to do a job. They should be here for it,” Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) said.