Republicans Take Hard Line on Border as Ukraine Vote in Senate Looms

House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana, a Republican, stated that in order to support the Democrats’ request for substantial aid to Ukraine in its conflict with Russia, Republicans are pushing for significant alterations to U.S. border and immigration policies. Johnson conveyed this message to the White House in a letter, specifying that the approval of additional funding for Ukraine would be contingent upon the implementation of substantial changes to national border security laws. He specifically mentioned the House Republicans’ H.R. 2 immigration bill as a potential starting point for these changes. It is important to note that this bill was passed by the Republican-controlled House in May, without any support from Democrats, but it never received a vote in the Democrat-controlled Senate.