Sinking Biden should trade secure border for Ukraine aid

This is how much President Biden cares about defending Ukraine: He has refused to even discuss Republican demands for enhanced border security in return for the $61 billion in aid that the White House tells us is essential to battle Russia.  

In a letter to leaders in Congress, Biden’s budget director, Shalanda Young, warned that the U.S. will run out of funding to send weapons and assistance to Ukraine by the end of the year, saying that would “kneecap” Ukraine on the battlefield. “We are out of money — and nearly out of time,” she wrote.

Despite that dire pronouncement, and Biden’s supposed commitment to Ukraine, he and his political allies have rebuffed GOP attempts to trade more funding for measures that might slow the tidal wave of people coming into our country illegally. The choice is especially idiotic since Americans give the president poor marks on his handling of immigration while deeming it one of their most important issues.

The Real Clear Politics average of polls shows Biden’s approval on immigration at 34 percent — one of his worst scores on individual issues. A recent NBC poll puts immigration and border security among voters’ top three concerns.

Meanwhile, appalled by the endless caravans wending their way north, the deaths from fentanyl flowing over the border, the growing power of the Mexican cartels and the economic toll of migrants descending upon cities like New York, the country has become less tolerant of unrestricted immigration. Gallup polling showed that in May 2020, only 28 percent of Americans thought we should have less immigration. Today, no doubt thanks to Biden’s reckless dismantling of border policies enacted by President Trump, 41 percent want fewer immigrants.

And if the jobs market softens over the next several months, as seems likely, Americans will turn even more hostile to unrestricted immigration. The latest JOLTS report indicates a drop in the number of jobs available, while the most recent ADP report shows layoffs of workers in leisure and hospitality; it is lower-income Americans competing for those kinds of jobs who traditionally vote Democrat and who will be most unhappy with increased competition for employment.

In other words, given the chance to secure the funds needed to fight Putin, turn around the catastrophe at our southern border and possibly improve his approval ratings, Biden is choosing to double down on his single campaign theme: that Republicans are dangerous extremists.

At a recent fundraiser, Biden told supporters: “Extreme MAGA Republicans in Congress will not support the essential assistance to Ukraine unless we follow the most draconian actions possible to keep immigrants out of America, building walls and the like.”

Democrats are very good at singing from the same hymnal. The “extreme MAGA Republican” theme has been echoed by party leaders over and over; it will be their signature battle cry throughout the 2024 election cycle. Indeed, the refrain has been picked up by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who denounced the GOP demands in predictable fashion, posting on X: “Pro-Putin extremists in the House Republican Conference are undermining America’s national security.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) weighed in as well, posting: “The holdup on the security supplemental hasn’t been over Ukraine or Israel but over Republicans’ decision to inject hard-right immigration measures.” He claims Democrats have “engaged in good faith” but that the GOP “have tripled down on extreme policies that seem dictated by Trump and Stephen Miller.”

The liberal media has faithfully echoed these denouncements, so it is fair to ask: What exactly are those “draconian” and “hard-right” immigration measures that Republicans want in exchange for writing Ukraine another whopper of a check?

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) wants to attach H.R.2, the Secure the Border Act, to the aid package — a bill that passed with only GOP votes last spring. H.R.2 included resuming construction of a border wall, imposing tougher limits on the asylum process, requiring a plan for investing in new border technology and other measures meant to cut down on illegal immigration. 

Polling shows more than half the country supports building a border wall and 55 percent of Americans think the surge in migrants is creating a “crisis.” So, maybe Johnson’s demands are not so extreme after all.

In other words, Republicans are fighting to enact measures to help the Border Patrol cope with the tens of thousands of people overwhelming our border each week and creating fiscal crises for cities like New York.

Measures, it should be noted, that Schumer once fought for as well, long before his party decided the quickest way to attain a permanent voter majority was to admit millions of Hispanics, assuming that within one generation their children would become reliable Democrat voters.

A decade ago, Schumer was part of a bipartisan group proposing revamped immigration policies; during those conversations, Schumer told reporters “We just want to make sure — and this is very important both substantively and politically — that there is a secure border, and we’re going to work for that.” The proposal, in 2013, included constructing a border fence.

Meanwhile, it turns out Hispanics, too, dislike having their communities swarmed by people who are in the country illegally, or the drug lords and gang members who come with them.

Recent polling of Latino voters by UnidosUS and Mi Familia Vota shows Biden leading Donald Trump by 18 points, considerably lower than the 33-point margin Biden enjoyed in the 2020 election. The survey revealed that those voters ranked increasing border security and “increasing legal immigration” as important priorities.

Almost certainly, Republicans do not expect the entire House bill to move through the senate in exchange for funding for Ukraine. Senate Republicans are attempting to find a middle ground, pressing especially for changes in our asylum process in hopes that tougher rules might slow the unlawful crossings. Joe Biden should be grateful.

Liz Peek is a former partner of major bracket Wall Street firm Wertheim & Company. Follow her on Twitter @lizpeek.