As negotiations continue in the Senate on immigration reform, Senate Republicans are vowing to block a bipartisan border security deal from moving forward on the floor, three months after Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) hailed it as a “huge success,” reflecting the rising partisan tensions of an election year. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) plans to hold a vote to advance it Thursday, but no Republican senator has yet said they will vote for it, even though it was endorsed by the National Border Patrol Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. McConnell told President Joe Biden in a phone call Monday that Republicans will not vote for the border security deal they hashed out with Democrats earlier this year and instead urged Biden to address the border crisis through executive actions, even though administration officials have said for months they have limited authority to stop border crossings without congressional action. It is widely expected that the immigration legislation will fail, and the Senate will then adjourn for the Memorial Day recess.
While negotiations continue, the Senate is in session today, and confirmed its 200th judge of the Biden Administration, Angela Martinez, to be US District Judge for the District of Arizona by a vote of 66-28. The Senate is also expected to take up the nomination of Dena M. Coggins to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California and the Motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of Melissa Griffin Dalton to be Under Secretary of the Air Force.
The House is working on H.R. 4763 – Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act. After today, the House is only expected to be in session tomorrow morning and will then adjourn until Monday, June 3rd for the Memorial Day recess.
