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Wednesday, February 14, 2024
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U.S. Congress

 * House Impeaches Mayorkas
 * Ukraine and Israel Aid
 * How the Senate Is Changing
 * Mike Johnson Stumbles
 * G.O.P. Sinks Border Deal

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HOW SENATE DEMOCRATS FLIPPED THE BORDER ISSUE ON REPUBLICANS

Senator Chuck Schumer was wary of tying immigration policy to emergency aid for
Ukraine, but he saw an opening to address border turmoil that was becoming a
political liability — and to call Republicans’ bluff.

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Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader, worked with Republicans
to connect a border deal with funding for Ukraine.Credit...Kent Nishimura for
The New York Times


By Carl Hulse

Reporting from Capitol Hill

Feb. 14, 2024Updated 12:51 p.m. ET
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the world you select. Get it sent to your inbox.

As senators gathered on the floor for a typical Monday night vote at the end of
October, Senator Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican and minority leader,
approached Senator Chuck Schumer, his Democratic counterpart, with some
unsettling news: Border security was going to have to be part of any package to
free up endangered assistance for Ukraine.

To Mr. Schumer of New York, the majority leader, the ultimatum revived
unpleasant memories of his participation in difficult immigration negotiations
in 2013 that yielded a compromise, only to collapse despite strong bipartisan
support in the Senate. But saying no could doom the Ukraine aid and leave
Democrats holding the bag. He and his staff grappled with the problem for a
week, then gathered for a conference call on Sunday, Nov. 5. A bold new approach
took hold.

“We had an epiphany — sort of, lightning strikes,” Mr. Schumer recalled in an
interview. “Do border. If we did it right and were tough about it, it’s a win
for us. And it helps us with Ukraine because so many of our people care about
Ukraine, they will vote for a good border bill.”

The abrupt change in conventional Democratic thinking had profound significance
for the ensuing four months on Capitol Hill. It touched off a circuitous series
of events — including some near-death experiences — that paved the way for the
Senate’s approval early Tuesday of $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and
U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific. The final package notably did not contain new
border security provisions, after Senate conservatives opted to kill that
element of the legislation despite their initial insistence that it be included.



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The tanking of the immigration proposal, hammered out over weeks of talks
between the designees of Mr. Schumer and Mr. McConnell, ultimately cleared the
way for passage of the foreign aid bill. Enough Republicans — 22 in the end —
were unwilling to desert Ukraine, and many of them believed that Mr. Schumer and
his fellow Democrats had made a good-faith effort to strike a border security
deal that was sabotaged by members of their own party.


Image

Senate Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority
leader, did not vote for the legislation.Credit...Anna Rose Layden for The New
York Times


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Carl Hulse is the chief Washington correspondent, primarily writing about
Congress and national political races and issues. He has nearly four decades of
experience reporting in the nation’s capital. More about Carl Hulse

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