Congress gave up Tuesday on a last-ditch bid to speed through emergency military aid to Ukraine before the end of the year, as negotiators failed to cement a deal that Republicans have demanded tying the money to a crackdown on migration across the U.S. border with Mexico.
“It is our hope that their efforts will allow the Senate to take swift action on the national security supplemental early in the new year,” Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the majority leader, and Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the minority leader, said in a rare joint statement.
They pledged to address Ukraine aid and border measures alongside military funding to Israel and the Indo-Pacific, promising that “the Senate will not let these national security challenges go unanswered.”
The delay punts the fate of Ukraine aid — and the complicated task of drafting new immigration laws — into early next year, when lawmakers will also face the daunting task of striking a broader spending agreement to avert a partial government shutdown by mid-January.
“We are not going to have a lot of time when we get back to get our security package and full-year funding bills across the finish line,” said Senator Patty Murray, Democrat of Washington and the chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, admonishing Republicans to “get serious” about spending negotiations.
“January is not going to be an enjoyable month,” Senator Susan Collins of Maine, the top Republican on the committee, told reporters.
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