(WWJ) Senators in Washington D.C. still cannot come to a compromise on legislation related to the crisis a the U.S.-Mexico border.
A procedural vote that would begin debate on a bipartisan border bill failed again Thursday, 50-to-43.
Democrats would have needed 60 votes to advance the legislation.
Ahead of the vote, Sen. Gary Peters (D-Michigan) admitted that the bill is not comprehensive immigration reform, but said it would address some critical issues:
"The bill would allow us to hire more than 2,000 CBP officers, addressing a critical shortage of frontline personnel who safeguard our national security at points of entry each and every day," Peters said. "It would provide $2 billion for our advanced screening technology. This would allow CBP to expand use of these tools, helping them to identify illegal cargo, and stop dangerous drugs like fentanyl from reaching and poisoning our communities."
The legislation, negotiated by a bipartisan group of senators, was rejected by most Republicans in February; with Thursday's vote giving Republicans a second chance to show their support.
Peters wasn't shy about blaming GOP Senators for their failure, saying they'd rather campaign on border reform than actually do something about it.
"Republicans in Congress certainly like to talk about the need to secure our borders, but they use this issue to stoke fear in our communities all across the country," Peters said. "But when you get a common sense bill, like the bill that we have before us, to vote on — a bill that aims to address the problems they claim that they want to solve — they simply walk away. They talk the talk, but they refuse to walk the walk."
The Associate Press reports Republican leaders spent much of the week decrying the vote as political theatre, and placing blame with President Joe Biden for the historic number of migrants who have made their way to the U.S. in recent years.
“We're nearing the end of President Biden' s term, and the American people's patience for his failing to secure the southern border is running thin,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday.
Following the failed vote, Biden slammed Republicans for blocking the bill, saying it showed they “do not care about securing the border or fixing America’s broken immigration system.”