GOP senator says border deal would make matters worse

Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) came out against the bipartisan Senate border security bill on Monday, warning that it could actually make border security worse.

“My top priority last year was to secure the border. They did not give me a bill that secures the border, it actually makes the border worse,” Marshall said on NewsNation’s “The Hill” on Monday.

“Elections have consequences. What we know is Joe Biden’s goal every day is as many people across the border legally or illegally as he can. Donald Trump’s going to shut the border down the first day,” he continued. “They both — whoever the President — has the authority, the ability to put it down right now.”

Marshall added that he could be persuaded to back the deal after a “very rigorous amendment process.” 

“The bill, as written, I’m a hell no,” he said. “Maybe this is when negotiations start, we’ll see, but if this is the bill we’re voting on, then I’m done.”

The bipartisan deal overhauls the asylum program, provides funds for thousands of new immigration officers, allows the president to shut down the border on an emergency basis and funds foreign aid priorities abroad.

Marshall claims President Biden has the authority to shut down the border completely now, echoing similar calls from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House GOP leaders. President Biden says he does not and has endorsed the measure as a “tough” but “fair” compromise on border security.

The measure has also received support from the Senate leaders of both parties, and from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol and its union.

Johnson has led opposition to the agreement, with an increasing number of House GOP members, in addition to former President Trump, railing against it and claiming it would hand Democrats a political victory before the general election.

The Speaker has pledged that the deal will not receive a House vote if it passes the Senate.

The Hill and NewsNation share a parent company, Nexstar Media Group.

The Hill on NewsNation airs Monday to Friday at 5 p.m. EST.