Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon from the Foreign Relations Committee addressed the ongoing struggles in Congress to broker a deal. He revealed a dedicated team from both sides were working with the administration, even well into the night, to establish a complete framework by the following Monday. Despite the complex undertaking, Merkley left room for cautious optimism, stating a 50-50 chance of successfully passing the legislation.
He elaborated on the significance of the legislation at stake, identifying the dire need for securing Ukraine's funding. Likening a failure to fund Ukraine to appeasing Vladimir Putin, Merkley reiterated the historical precedent of such appeasements leading to disastrous consequences. He made a plea against the endorsement of Putin's appeasement, insisting the legislation was too critical to lose momentum over the holidays.
Further, Senator Merkley acknowledged the divisive nature of immigration, a contentious issue bundled with the critical aid to Ukraine and Israel. In response to queries over President Biden's decision, he defended the move to include border funding, largely at the request of Republicans. However, he expressed discontent with proposals that suggested adopting policies similar to Steve Miller's, considering them unacceptable.
Twitter Post On Senator Merkley: Border Issue Complicated, Ukraine Aid Essential
Amid concerns about possible steps hurting President Biden's chances of re-election, Merkley affirmed many public reports were inaccurate. Acknowledging immigration measures that could deeply disturb him, he answered by waiting to see the outlines of a potential deal. Meanwhile, Senator Merkley supported various steps towards border security and reductions in asylum wait times mentioned by Biden.
Lastly, Senator Merkley commented on the idea of ending the war in Ukraine. He stressed the importance of aiding Ukraine and warned against the consequences of failing them, opening doors for every dictator to infringe upon neighboring countries. Confronted with the controversial stance of the U.S. encouraging Ukraine to negotiate peace with Russia, Merkley claimed a stalemate has been reached, and an openness to an agreement should be considered carefully.
