Booker Statement on Bipartisan Security Supplemental Deal

Statement

"At a time when we need to come together and find solutions, it's been appalling to once again watch my Republican colleagues create more problems and chaos by abandoning a good-faith negotiation and bipartisan compromise due to pressure from former President Trump and his MAGA allies. This is some of the worst of Washington I've seen.

Ongoing crises around the world demand the United States' urgent attention in the interest of national security and to minimize human suffering. Right now, more people in the world than ever before are facing acute food insecurity due to war and famine. The people of Ukraine are on the front lines of the fight for democracy and freedom, and their ability to repel Putin's illegal war is hanging in the balance. The Israel-Hamas conflict has magnified the world's security and humanitarian challenges.

At the same time, I'm incredibly frustrated to see immigration law changes in this deal that will violate Americans' shared values, not make us safer, and not actually solve the serious immigration problems facing our nation.

There are real safety and security issues at the border, and to fix them we must pass comprehensive immigration reform. We need common sense solutions, such as a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, farmworkers, and other longtime residents and policies that address the root causes of migration. These steps and others are essential to meaningfully changing our immigration system and a majority of Americans support them.

The way to correct the deficiencies of the deal is to continue debating them. My yes vote today on the motion to proceed is intended to reflect the depth of my commitment to finding solutions to our biggest challenges. It is in no way an endorsement of the immigration provisions included in the underlying legislation."

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