Former President Donald Trump has claimed credit for the collapse of a bipartisan border deal, which he described as “dead.”
What Happened: Trump took pride in the failure of the bipartisan border deal during a speech to the National Rifle Association in Harrisburg, Pa., on Friday, reported The Hill. The deal, which took months to negotiate, was already under scrutiny from Senate Republicans, with some expressing disapproval of Trump’s involvement in its downfall.
Trump had urged Republicans to vote against the bill even before its unveiling, arguing that its passage would be a political win for President Joe Biden in the upcoming election. The former president specifically criticized a provision in the bill that would have provided immigration lawyers to unaccompanied children under 13, a measure he claimed would cost taxpayers millions of dollars.
“You give illegals taxpayer-funded lawyers, so they have millions of dollars in this agreement, in this deal, which we by the way killed,” Trump said.
“I think we killed it. I think it’s dead! But you can never say it because bad bills always come back to life because these guys make a lot of money with bad bills,” he added.
“But they give millions, tens of millions of dollars that’s down there to lawyers to represent the illegal immigrants that come into our country. It’s not even believable.”
Despite the bill’s failure, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had previously argued that the deal was crucial to addressing the significant influx of migrants across the border and could potentially be the last opportunity for years to reform immigration law. However, Trump’s opposition to any deal that did not meet all of the GOP’s demands led to Republican lawmakers withdrawing their support for the package.
Why It Matters: The collapse of the bipartisan border deal comes after President Biden vowed to invoke emergency powers to seal the U.S. border in response to surging migration, contingent on Congressional approval of the new immigration framework. This move marked a significant shift in the administration’s approach to immigration, aligning with the urgent need for reform.
Trump’s role in the failure of the border deal is not surprising, given his previous efforts to influence the GOP’s stance on the issue. Earlier in January, the House Speaker, Mike Johnson (R-La.), reportedly faced pressure from Trump and conservatives to reject the bipartisan border deal. At the same time, the Senate GOP and the White House were in favor of the agreement, arguing that the Ukraine aid provided leverage to secure essential border reforms.
Meanwhile, the proposed border security bill has also faced criticism from influential figures like Elon Musk, who highlighted potential flaws in the legislation. Musk reposted a tweet that pointed out the bill’s potential to codify illegal border crossings and the risk of the “border emergency” being overturned by President Biden.
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