House Approves $4.5B Package To Send Humanitarian Aid To Border To Address ‘Atrocity That Violates Every Value We Have’
The package faces an uphill battle, though. Democrats will now dive into negotiations with Senate GOP leaders, in a difficult bid to get the long-delayed aid package signed into law before leaving town Thursday for a weeklong recess.
The New York Times:
House Approves Border Aid, Seeking To Curb Trump’s Crackdown
A divided House voted on Tuesday to send $4.5 billion in humanitarian aid to the border to address horrific conditions facing a crush of migrants, attaching significant rules on how the money could be spent in the first action by Democrats to rein in President Trump’s immigration crackdown. But the package — which passed by a vote of 230 to 195 nearly along party lines, only after Democratic leaders toughened restrictions on the money to win over liberal skeptics — faces a tough path to enactment. (Hirschfeld Davis and Cochrane, 6/25)
Politico:
House Passes Border Spending Package In Win For Pelosi
Top Democrats made several tweaks to the contentious emergency spending package just hours before it was considered on the floor to fend off a left-wing rebellion, according to multiple lawmakers and aides. The final version included strict conditions requiring private detention facilities to meet certain standards of care within six months or risk losing their contract. It was the second time in two days that progressive leaders forced changes to the bill amid reluctance to giving Trump any money for his immigration agenda. (Ferris, Caygle and Scholtes, 6/25)
CNN:
House Passes Border Aid Bill Despite White House Veto Threat
The progressive pushback against the bill was an unexpected wrinkle in the race to get the legislation passed and signed into law before a key agency -- the Office of Refugee Resettlement -- runs out of money at the end of the month. That's not the only agency in desperate need of funding to stem the crisis at the border. The funding would also go to help other agencies and help manage the crisis. (Foran, Killough, Fox and Raju, 6/25)
Texas Tribune:
U.S. House Passes $4.5 Billion Border Aid Bill Amid Concern For Migrant Children
Ultimately, only four Democrats broke rank, none of them were Texans. Among the Republicans from the state, U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, was the only member to buck his party, voting in favor of the bill. Hurd's districts covers much of the state's border with Mexico. In the days leading up to the vote, opposition on the Democratic side was concentrated primarily among members of the House Progressive and Congressional Hispanic caucuses who voiced concerns that the Trump administration would twist the bill’s intent to put some of the money toward border enforcement rather than migrant aid. (Willis, 6/25)
The Associated Press:
Time Running Short, Showdown Looms Over Border Aid Package
“The Senate has a good bill. Our bill is much better,” Pelosi, D-Calif., told her Democratic colleagues in a meeting Tuesday morning, according to a senior Democratic aide who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private session. “We are ensuring that children have food, clothing, sanitary items, shelter and medical care. We are providing access to legal assistance. And we are protecting families because families belong together,” Pelosi said in a subsequent floor speech. (Taylor and Fram, 6/26)
The Washington Post:
House Passes $4.5 Billion Emergency Border Aid Bill With Provisions For The Treatment Of Migrant Children In U.S. Custody
The backdrop for the vote is not only the humanitarian concerns about the surging numbers of migrants but also Trump’s threats — delayed but not canceled Saturday — to begin a mass deportation of undocumented immigrant families. Democratic lawmakers has expressed concerns about passing a border aid bill that would not address both of those issues. (DeBonis and Werner, 6/25)
The Wall Street Journal:
House Passes $4.5 Billion Bill For Humanitarian Assistance At Border
The Trump administration has indicated that it would veto the House legislation, and Republicans in both chambers have dismissed the House effort as ultimately futile. The Senate bill passed out of the Appropriations Committee with 30 supporting votes and a single dissent, encouraging lawmakers in both parties. “You can’t get 30-1 around here to say the sun’s going to rise in the east. We passed it 30 to 1,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.), the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. “It’s a no-brainer, bring it up.” (Duehren, 6/25)
NBC News:
House Passes Border Funding Bill To Address Humanitarian Crisis
The Senate is expected to take up its version of the bill Wednesday, McCarthy said after speaking with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and pass it by the end of the week before senators leave for a weeklong July 4 recess. The House and Senate will still need to reconcile the differences between their measures. (Shabad and Caldwell, 6/26)
