(ConservativeInsider.org) – While President Joe Biden is pushing for the Senate to approve more funding to aid Ukraine in their efforts against Russia, some Senate Republicans are pushing back, warning the president that they will not vote for his Ukrainian package without agreeing to tighten up immigration laws in the United States.
The proposal was put forth by three Republican Senators: Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and James Lankford of Oklahoma. It calls for several changes to current US immigration policy, including harsher penalties for illegal border crossings, limiting the ability for officials to grant humanitarian parole to migrants, and increasing the standard at which “credible fear” is judged for asylum-seekers.
Sen. Lankford said Republicans who support his proposal are unwilling to help provide security for other countries while our own country remains so insecure. He also pointed out that even Alejandro Mayorkas, the Homeland Security Secretary, has said that the current system for asylum seekers “needs to be reformed from top to bottom.”
Sen. Graham, who has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine and has been known to work with Democrats on immigration issues, said the Ukrainian aid package will not pass without making asylum laws tougher. Graham highlighted the steep increase in asylum claims in the U.S., as illegal border crossings are now averaging at least 8,000 per month.
While U.S. and international law allows migrants the right to seek asylum from political or religious persecution, many conservatives believe that migrants are taking advantage of the system as it is set up currently. They are able to live and work in the U.S. while they wait for the court to process their claims, which can sometimes take years.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has not said if he supports the Republican proposal yet. He did, however, say that he believes the best way for Democrats and the Biden administration to overcome a potential filibuster by Republicans is to add more enforcement for the U.S. border.
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