Majority Leader Schumer Statement On Bipartisan Senate Agreement On Emergency National Security Supplemental
Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today released the following statement on the bipartisan Senate agreement on the emergency national security supplemental:
“The Senate’s bipartisan agreement is a monumental step towards strengthening America’s national security abroad and along our borders. This is one of the most necessary and important pieces of legislation Congress has put forward in years to ensure America’s future prosperity and security.
“I have said over and over that the only way we will rise to the occasion is if both sides are serious about finding bipartisan policy solutions. I am proud that after four months of hard negotiations we have reached a bipartisan agreement that is a product of compromise, hard work, and persistence. The priorities in this bill are too important to ignore and too vital to allow politics to get in the way.
“The United States and our allies are facing multiple, complex and, in places, coordinated challenges from adversaries who seek to disrupt democracy and expand authoritarian influence around the globe. These grave threats to U.S. national security require Congress to act with conviction and bipartisanship to confront these challenges. The emergency national security supplemental appropriations agreement does precisely that: it provides billions in vital investments in America’s national security to address growing threats in the Middle East and Red Sea, equips Ukraine to fight off Putin, helps Israel defend itself against forces that wish to wipe a Jewish state off the map while also providing humanitarian assistance to innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza, answers the call for humanitarian assistance around the world, and bolsters Taiwan and other allies in the Indo-Pacific region against China. This agreement also includes a historic increase in emergency and operational funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program to protect at-risk communities and institutions at home.
“The bipartisan border security agreement reached by Senators Chris Murphy, Kyrsten Sinema and James Lankford is a real opportunity for Congress to address our borders and make progress towards a more efficient and well-resourced system. This agreement improves an adjudication system that has been underfunded for decades by hiring more frontline personnel, asylum officers, and creating new processes to provide faster and fair decisions. I commend all the Democrats and Republicans who have worked together to address the challenges along our southern border.
“In the coming days, the Senate must act decisively on this emergency national security supplemental funding. On Monday, I will take the first procedural step to getting this passed in the Senate with the first vote scheduled for Wednesday. This is too important to let the calendar get in the way of passing this bill.
“I know the overwhelming majority of Senators want to get this done, and it will take bipartisan cooperation to move quickly. Senators must shut out the noise from those who want this agreement to fail for their own political agendas.
“This moment demands American leadership. It demands the Senate’s decisive action. I have no doubt that the Senate can, once again, rise to the occasion and lead America forward.”
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