OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

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Floor Speech

Date: Dec. 19, 2023
Location: Washington, DC

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, Senate Democrats and Republicans understand there is more work to do to pass legislation protecting America's security and the security of the Western World. We have made important progress. But negotiations have not been easy, and it is going to take more time.

But no matter how long it takes, we must succeed because the stakes are high--for America and for our friends in Europe, the Middle East, and around the world. We must send more aid to Ukraine to defeat Vladimir Putin. We must help our friends in Israel prevent another terrorist attack like October 7. We must send critical aid to innocent civilians in Gaza.

Republicans and Democrats must also continue negotiations on an agreement for securing our southern border. As the past few weeks have made abundantly clear, Democrats have always been willing to engage in good-faith, realistic negotiations about border security. We agree the border must be fixed, but not at the expense of our values.

Finding common ground on the border has been difficult--in fact, one of the most difficult issues Congress has faced in a good while. The details here matter immensely, and this is not a topic that Congress has tackled at this level in many years. While we have made important progress over the past week on border security, everyone understands that we have more work to do, and that it is going to take more time.

Later today, I will meet with colleagues at the weekly Democratic caucus lunch to give an update on border and supplemental negotiations.

Now, I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for working without rest on the supplemental package. I also thank staff from both sides who have been working morning, noon, and night to push us forward.

Again, we still have more to do. It is not going to be easy, and everyone understands it is going to take more time to figure this out. But we must--we must--succeed. Democrats remain committed to working with our Republican counterparts to reach an agreement.

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