TRANSCRIPT: Majority Leader Schumer Delivers Remarks After White House Meeting To Discuss National Security Supplemental

Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke at a press availability with House Democratic Leader Jeffries (D-NY) after meeting with President Biden and Congressional leaders regarding negotiations on the supplemental and the border. Remarks can be viewed here:

It was a very good meeting, a very positive meeting. There was a large amount of agreement around the table that we must do Ukraine and we must do border. There was tremendous focus on Ukraine, and an understanding that if we don’t come to Ukraine’s aid, that the consequences for America around the globe would be nothing short of devastating. And within a year, we would be on our backfoot doing all kinds of things that we wouldn't want to do, that it was essential—essential—and there was Democratic and Republican agreement—that it was essential we help Ukraine. We also talked about the border and how it's so important to deal with the border.

The President himself said over and over again, that he is willing to move forward on border. And so, we said we have to do both. There were a couple of people in the room who said let's do border first. We said we have to do both together. Let me make one more point: the only way we will do border and Ukraine, or even either of them, is bipartisan. You cannot—cannot— do things with one party in a divided Congress. And so anyone who says, any party that says do it my way or no way, we're not going to get anything done. And I think there was broad agreement in the room that we had to do this in a bipartisan way.

Speaking in the Senate, we are making really good progress. I am more optimistic now that we can come to an agreement on border and Ukraine in one package, along with aid to Israel, along with humanitarian aid for the Palestinians in Gaza, and along with helping Indochina. I am more optimistic than ever before that we come to an agreement. I put the chances a little bit greater than half now. And that's the first time I can say that. And so we hope to fund the government this week. And then if we can come to an agreement, we haven't come to an agreement yet in the Senate, move very quickly on the supplemental very shortly thereafter.

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