Connecticut Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy detailed Wednesday to MSNBC how illegal migrants are the people liberals “care about most.”
Murphy appeared on “All In with Chris Hayes” to discuss the recent Senate border bill which was blocked by Republicans on Wednesday. MSNBC host Chris Hayes questioned the Connecticut senator on the bill’s failed ending and pointed out that the negotiations had been “entirely” on the GOP’s terms by excluding Democrats’ well-known want of a “path to citizenship.” (RELATED: Senate Republicans Block Border Bill)
Murphy stated that the “play” for Democrats to include a path to citizenship has “failed” within the last “30 years” which has neglected to deliver for the undocumented Americans whom they “care about most.” The Connecticut senator stated that due to the alarming increase of illegal migrants crossing over Americans “reality” has changed around the views on the border crisis.
“Well, I mean, Chris, that’s been a failed play for 20 years. So you are right that that has been the democratic strategy for 30 years, maybe, and it has failed to deliver for the people we care about most, the undocumented Americans that are in this country,” Murphy stated.
“This is also not 2013 any longer, when we ran that play last. Back then, there were a couple hundred people showing up every day applying for asylum. Today, on some days there are 8,000. And the reality is that the bulk of this country does not think that’s right or sustainable and wants us to change the reality at the border.”
“So I know there’s a temptation for Democrats, and I know you weren’t looking for this argument, but I think there is a temptation to just run the same play we always run, because we know how to run it. But when it hasn’t worked, and when the country is actually demanding that we do something to make the border more manageable, I think we do have a right and a responsibility to adjust to that reality,” Murphy stated.
Murphy continued to state the inclusions of left-leaning policies within the bill that were “substantial for people” who “actually care about migrants.” While Murphy called out Republicans for using the border crisis as their “perennial election year issue,” he stated the bill “didn’t matter” in the end due to the GOP. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: ‘This Is Our Opportunity’ — Top GOP Senators Game McConnell’s Ouster After Botched Border Deal)
“Now this bill style had in it some really important things for migrant rights, including a right to representation and earlier work permits, and the biggest expansion of visas in 30 years. It’s not a pathway to citizenship, but it is something substantial for people that actually care about migrants,” Murphy stated.
“But in the end, all this didn’t matter, because as it turns out, Republicans are just absolutely allergic to fixing the problem at the border, because they are so used to having this be their perennial election year issue. They just couldn’t give it up in the end, so they asked James Lankford to cut this steal, he did exactly what they asked, Mitch McConnell was in the room for the entirety of the negotiation, and in the end even Mitch McConnell voted against it. Only three others joined James Lankford on the floor today to support the bipartisan border fix bill.”
Following months of negotiations on the bipartisan border deal, the Senate failed to pass after a 49-50 vote, with only four Republicans voting in support of the bill. The long-awaited text revealed that the $118 billion total would split three ways between two foreign wars and the U.S. southern border. Roughly $48 billion was set to go to Ukraine aid to help in its war against Russia, almost $16 billion would’ve been given to Israel to help against Hamas, and the remaining would have been set to aid border security reforms.
Upon the release of the bill on Sunday, Republican lawmakers immediately pushed back by calling out issues online within the text’s legal sway for illegal immigrants. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, along with many of his colleagues, vowed to kill the deal if it had made its way onto the Congressional floor.
Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has since stated that he will be presenting a package on the floor with foreign aid to both Israel and Ukraine, ultimately separating it from any southern border security reforms.