Republican Draws Red Line for Joe Biden to Pass Ukraine Aid

Florida Republican Representative Byron Donalds drew a red line on Thursday for President Joe Biden to pass an aid package to Ukraine amid the ongoing war with Russia.

"If the president secured the southern border, which he could do by executive order today, if he did that, you would have room to figure out how to get money for Ukraine," Donalds said this week, according to The Hill. "Many members on Capitol Hill would go for it. But without a secure southern border, it's not going to happen."

On Thursday, the U.S. Senate voted 67-32 to pass legislation that provides aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The vote came shortly after Republicans in the Senate criticized a bipartisan border security bill that also included aid to Ukraine, citing issues with aspects relating to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Senators James Lankford, Kyrsten Sinema and Chris Murphy proposed the legislation following severe backlash over the Biden administration's handling of the U.S.-Mexico border and a continued influx of illegal migrants crossing the nation's borders.

According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in December there were 302,034 total migrant encounters on the nation's southwest land borders, an increase from the two previous months, which saw over 200,000.

However, shortly after the proposed legislation was released, Republicans in the House and Senate expressed opposition and called for further measures relating to border security.

"There is a 0% chance this failed border bill will pass the House. It effectively normalizes 5,000 illegal aliens crossing the border per day—more than 1.8 million per year," Texas Senator Ted Cruz previously said on X, formerly Twitter.

In addition to criticizing the bipartisan legislation, a number of Republican lawmakers called on Biden to take executive action to secure the border.

"Another 1 million encounters at the southern border since the start of the fiscal year. This is a new record, and the earliest we've hit this terrible threshold. Under President Biden, the catastrophe he created grows worse, and the danger and chaos at the border continues to harm America," House Speaker Mike Johnson said on X. "He must immediately use his executive authority to take action now."

In response to calls to take executive action on the border, Biden recently said: "I've done all I can do."

"Just give me the power. Give me the border patrol. Give me the people. The judges. Give me the people who can stop this and make it work right," Biden told reporters last month.

Newsweek reached out to the White House via email for comment.

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