Over the objection of conservative members, the United States Senate passed a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.
Sen. John Cornyn joined most Democrats and 21 Republicans in voting to pass the package. Sen. Ted Cruz, meanwhile, voted against the measure.
Cruz expressed concern that the measure included no funding for border security along the U.S. southern border, which has been a sticking point for the House.
“It is important that Israel eradicates Hamas, that Taiwan remains resilient against China’s threats, and that Ukraine defeats Russia. I have consistently supported providing aid to ensure these allies are strong,” said Cruz.
However, we must defend our nation first. I will vote to support aid to our allies, but only after America’s border is secured. No state bears the brunt of this burden more heavily than Texas, which is on the front lines of a literal invasion of millions upon millions of illegal aliens.
Meanwhile, Cornyn said that while he would rather support a package with border security appropriations, the legislation still represents “a renewal of essential American leadership.”
“I am deeply disappointed that the national security supplemental appropriation failed to achieve a secure border, but in the end, if President Biden won’t enforce current laws, I have no confidence he will enforce any new ones. We need to elect a President who will enforce all our laws in order to secure the border. Still, I was supportive of all efforts to amend the bill to include tougher border security measures, like HR 2, which Democrats, unfortunately, successfully blocked,” said Cornyn.
“But the fact remains that the global threat landscape today is more complex than any point since World War II. This legislation replenishes our military stockpiles and addresses the biggest national security threats we face, from Hamas’ horrific attacks on Israel to China’s aggression in the Indo-Pacific to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In order to deter China’s threats in the Indo-Pacific, and win in any conflict, America needs cutting-edge weapons and the capacity to quickly produce them, and this legislation makes important progress toward that goal,” he added.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton criticized Cornyn’s vote in a post on X, stating, “Unsurprisingly, America Last RINO John Cornyn has once again joined hands with the Biden administration to fund and prioritize foreign wars over the national security crisis at the southern border.”
Refraining from addressing the issue at hand, Cornyn instead responded by accusing Paxton of “pushing Russian propaganda” and invoking the political prosecution against Paxton.
The passage of the aid package was praised by Democrat Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, who said, “It’s certainly been years, perhaps decades, since the Senate has passed a bill that so greatly impacts not just our national security, not just the security of our allies, but the security of Western democracy.”
The legislation must be approved by the House where, without border security funding, its fate is uncertain.
