(The Center Square) – The $1.7 trillion omnibus bill that’s over 4,155 pages long includes hundreds of millions of dollars to fund border security efforts in other countries but would prohibit funding new U.S. border security technology and capabilities.
Democrats were joined by 21 Republican senators in voting to advance the bill, including U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
It includes $772.5 billion in non-defense discretionary programs and $858 billion in defense funding, according to a bill summary published by U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, said on Tuesday, “I’m pretty proud of the fact that with a Democratic president, Democratic House, and Democratic Senate, we were able to achieve through this Omnibus spending bill essentially all of our priorities.”
These priorities include, U.S. Rep. Dan Bishop, R-NC, says, prohibiting funding for U.S. Customs and Border Protection technology to improve security at the southern U.S. border while funding border security for Middle Eastern countries.
The bill also would fund increased processing and transportation of illegal foreign nationals throughout the U.S. and allocate $1.2 million for DACA recipients, despite federal courts repeatedly ruling the program is illegal in a case brought by Texas.
The bill states, “None of the funds … shall be used to hire permanent federal employees; for any flight hours other than those flown by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Air and Marine Operations, except for internal transportation of noncitizens; or to acquire, maintain, or extend border security technology and capabilities, except for technology and capabilities to improve Border Patrol processing.”
In response, the Border Patrol Union, which represents U.S. Border Patrol agents tasked with border security, said, “The Biden Admin doesn’t want more money for DHS to enforce laws and deport people. They only want more money to process more people so they can release more people. Don’t be fooled by their propaganda.”
The bill would allocate $410 million to border security for the countries of Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia and Oman through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency through Sept. 30, 2024.
The union also said, “No administration in modern history of this country has done more damage, killed the morale of Border Patrol agents and unleashed death, destruction, rapes, murders and mayhem at our border like the Biden administration.”
It notes that the Carter administration takes a distant second place from 1976 to 1980.
The omnibus bill also would allocate an additional $45 billion to Ukraine and NATO allies, after calls have gone ignored to audit the nearly $50 billion already given to Ukraine with no accountability for how it was spent or conditions to repay it to the U.S.
In 2018-2019, the government shut down after Congress pushed back against President Donald Trump asking for $5 billion to fund border wall construction along the U.S. southwest border.
Nearly $100 billion allocated to Ukraine alone would fund 20 border walls, critics note. President Joe Biden halted border wall construction as one of his first acts, prompting Texas and Missouri to sue. They’ve so far won their first court battles in a case that’s still pending.
The bill also allocates nearly $12 billion to replenish Department of Defense stocks drawn down by the president and sent to Ukraine. According to a Council on Foreign Relations analysis, $22.9 billion worth of U.S. taxpayer money previously sent to Ukraine defense efforts included $12.7 billion worth of weapons and equipment depleted from U.S. military stocks.
The $1.7 billion price tag of a bill most in Congress haven’t read, critics argue, is unsustainable. The U.S. is facing a $2 trillion budget deficit in 2023 and is $32 trillion in debt.
The 21 Senate Republicans who voted to advance it include Blunt, Boozman, Capito, Collins, Cornyn, Cotton, Graham, Grassley, Hyde-Smith, McConnell, Moran, Murkowski, Portman, Romney, Rounds, Rubio, Shelby, Thune, Tuberville, Wicker and Young.
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said the Senate voted “to spend billions we do not have, empower Biden bureaucrats with no fixes, and block us from securing the border for at least nine months.”
“This vote is indefensible and damaging to Texas,” he added. “It takes away our leverage to force Biden to secure the border and in fact specifically says new DHS money can only be used to process MORE people, which will lead to more fentanyl, violence, and death. For Texans, this alone is reason enough to oppose this terrible bill.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky,joined by 21 Republican senators in voting to advance the bill, including U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
These people and the others that voted for this have lost their minds. You Congressmen and Senators need to end Foreign Aid and Money to the Ukraine totalitarian President that does not want to be a democracy. Use those funds here in the USA to secure our borders and the Homeless, and get the USA back on it’s feet.
Stop and think how all that money (millions) spent on the election could of helped fix our country. What a shame.
FIx our country? WHY WOULD THESE traitors want to do that?
THEY ARE ALL utterly wanting to ruin it…
“The Biden Admin doesn’t want more money for DHS to enforce laws and deport people. They only want more money to process more people so they can release more people. Don’t be fooled by their propaganda.”
“No administration in modern history of this country has done more damage, killed the morale of Border Patrol agents and unleashed death, destruction, rapes, murders and mayhem at our border like the Biden administration.”
And yet Fools still support this treasonous, destructive, unethical, woke , socialist Democrat Party????? 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁
ITS NOT Just the Dems doing this though. A sizable chunk of the so-called republicans are also doing it.
McConnell is the Senate Minority leader not the Majority Leader. This deal *****, and it only goes to prove we are electing RINOS including Rubio who I supported I am a total dum ***, but it looks like I got a lot of company!!!!
McConnell is the Senate Minority leader not the Majority Leader.
Yes, fixed it in the article. Thanks!
“…The 21 Senate Republicans who voted to advance it include Blunt, Boozman, Capito, Collins, Cornyn, Cotton, Graham, Grassley, Hyde-Smith, McConnell, Moran, Murkowski, Portman, Romney, Rounds, Rubio, Shelby, Thune, Tuberville, Wicker and Young….”
Taken from above article. ( RINOs ) each and every one listed, it’s quite apparent.
Congress now has 534 idiots (sans Rand Paul) occupying seats somewhere in the Capital. Fool “leaders” are Mr. Turtle Man, Perloser, Schmuck, Gaetz, Nadler, ******. A very long list. And this Omnibus Bill is the very definition of idiotic, irresponsible, treasonous. $410 million for border security in the Middle East. Hey DBs, what about the Mexico/US border, probably the most porous in the world. We have (ostensibly) money for border control in Lebanon and Oman but NOT in the US. You clowns can all take a long walk off a short pier. Adios No Amigas, No Amigos.
More proof that there IS ONLY ONE PARTY..
The Screw america over as fast as possible party..
I, too, supported Rubio. He won’t like my next letter.
none of these senators give a damm what we think or want.
Maybe not, but if everyone who posts a note here, sent a note to their Congresspeople with the same complaint or suggestion, they (the Congrescritters) might start to care.
THEY DON”T care what we say.. Never have.
It show their priority, and it AIN”T the USA! Those corrupt traitors (DemonRats and RINOS) want our country to be destroyed!
More and more, i day dream about a day where an alien ship comes in, and LEVELS the entirety of DC!
This bill should be called the ominous bill as it is ominous to the people of this nation, this admin has added more to the national debt than the last president ever did, it is almost li,e he can’t spend fast enough or spend enough on everything but this country. Since byden has been in office he has spent something like 10 trillion or more likely lots more than that has has yet to ask about any money back. This admin has done things that are an extreme danger to this country but he cares nothing about what he is doing as he does not remember from one day to the next.
After seeing the republicans under their despicable leader McConnell cave to Commie Democrats or shoot themself and their party in the foot, my new years resolution starts today – the GOP is dead, it doesn’t represent America citizens nor the Constitution. Trump should have started his own party after the fraud election that again the gop and republicans all just went along for the ride. I will never give a nickel plugged or otherwise to the gop or RNC or republican candidate. The Republicans have killed their party So take me off the sucker list,the puzzle pieces all fit together, you are just the other head of the same snake as the commie dems and you are deaf to the American concerns, no border security, no fiscal responsibility, no honor, no ethic and it is obvious that this is all planned before the vote. 4000 pages of waste and pandering to other countries and nothing to aid election reform, border security, stopping drugs and drug cartesl Well adios I will throw my money away or burn it before the republicans see a penny, won’t give it to the dems because they are just a bunch of woke lemmings also.
My advise to any voter who did help these idiots with donations – STOP – KEEP YOUR MONEY – THEY JUST WASTE IT ON PORK – HERE PIGGY PIGGY PIGGY
AND REPUBLICANS YOU BETTER DITCH MITCH BEFORE EVERYONE SEES OR PUT TOGETHER THAT YOU DON’T REPRESENT ANYONE BUT YOURSELVES.
Its getting to where, come the new year, i am seriously contemplating goiing down to my local voting office, and REMOVING MYSELF as a registered republican.. AND JUST NOT BOTHERING TO VOTE ever again… As there’s NO difference these days, BETWEEN the two parties…. They are the SCREW AMERICA OVER UNI PARTY!
Reminds one of the Fable About-” THE FARMER AND THE SNAKE,” the farmer trusts the snake not to bite him if the farmer would pick up the snake to warm him back to life but then the snake bites the farmer a deadly bite and the farmer with his dying breath says to the snake if i picked you up and warmed you that you wouldn’t bite me-The snake said to the farmer,
” But you knew that I was a snake when you picked me up.” The (career) politicians of both parties are SNAKES.
All long as we have career politicians the Washington cesspool will continue to be self-serving and ignore the cries of conservatives for responsible government. The midterms are over and there is no need for swampy Republicans to pretend they are conservative. For Mitch this is a win, because it expands the scope and power of the federal government. He aligns more with big government than he does the American people, it’s that simple.