President Donald Trump moved closer to securing a major expansion of his immigration agenda after the Senate approved a bill providing an additional $70 billion for border enforcement and deportation efforts.
Senate Advances Trump Immigration Funding Bill
The Senate voted 52-47 early Friday to approve legislation that would significantly increase funding for immigration enforcement agencies over the next three years, sending the measure to the House for final consideration, Reuters reported.
No Democrats supported the bill and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) was the lone Republican to oppose it.
Murkowski said she objected to bypassing the traditional appropriations process and criticized lawmakers for failing to permanently eliminate a controversial fund tied to the legislation.
Most of the funding would go toward expanding operations at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol as the Trump administration intensifies deportation efforts across the U.S.
Controversial ‘Anti-Weaponization’ Fund Sparks Bipartisan Pushback
Much of the debate centered on a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund that critics say could compensate Trump allies who claim they were unfairly targeted by the government.
Democrats repeatedly tried to remove or restrict the fund, describing it as a taxpayer-backed political slush fund. Several Republicans also expressed concerns, introducing amendments to eliminate or redirect the money.
Senate Republican Leader John Thune argued the issue had largely been resolved after acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testified that the Justice Department would not move forward with the program.
However, Democrats said verbal assurances were insufficient.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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