In a striking turn of events, Senate Republicans threatened Monday to block a major, bipartisan border security and asylum restrictions package, just one day after their chief negotiator signed off on it.
"I would anticipate Wednesday the cloture vote does not pass," Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., the lead GOP negotiator in the border talks, told reporters after the meeting.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters that Republicans worry there "hasn't been adequate time" to process the bill yet.
The 370-page bill, finalized and released on Sunday, was crafted with the input of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who advocated for it on the Senate floor Monday, warning of crises at the southern border and internationally.
McConnell told Republicans that if they have reasons to vote against the bill, they could, given that talks on amendments and how to proceed are ongoing, said a source familiar with the meeting.
Persons:
Mitch McConnell, Sen, James Lankford, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Trump, John Thune, It's, McConnell —, —, McConnell, I've, Brian Schatz
Organizations:
U.S, Capitol, Republicans, GOP, Republican, Radical Left Democrats, Democratic
Locations:
Washington , U.S, Ky, Ukraine, Israel, Hawaii