Democrats should prioritize economic concerns over immigration rather than an open border, Rep. Randy Weber, R-Texas, told Newsmax, expressing relief Saturday over the failure of the recent Senate bipartisan aid package he characterized as disastrous.
"The Democrats aren't concerned about safety; they ought to be concerned about the cost, economic cost: America cannot be, cannot afford to be, the charity for the world," Weber told "Saturday Report."
Weber reflected on his Texas House experience, highlighting the strain on resources, noting the influx of migrants would require funding for education, citing the impact on school districts.
"It was bad — 2009, 2012 many, many, many, many times worse. I can't believe the Democrats wanted something like that."
"There are 13,000 school districts in the United States," he said. "The average school district is about 3,500. We brought in 302,000 people in December.
"If 20% of them were 75,000 kids — kindergarten through 12 — we just brought in 27 complete school districts that somebody has to pay to educate."
Top Senate Republicans announced their opposition to the $118 billion supplemental aid package, which included foreign aid and border components, effectively blocking it from consideration.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., had planned to bring the bill to the floor Wednesday. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. declared during a press conference that Republicans saw no chance to pass the bill, signaling its demise.
The GOP's swift rejection of the bill centered on concerns over the process used to draft it and provisions related to immigration. Republicans criticized provisions they claimed would continue to allow thousands of migrants into the country daily.
Democrats, in turn, expressed frustration over the bill's failure and accused Republicans of misleading them by linking border funding to aid for Ukraine.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., declared the bill "dead on arrival" in the House.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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