[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 3 (Monday, January 8, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S6]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                           National Security

  Madam President, on the supplemental, in addition to fully funding 
the Federal Government, Senators have also been hard at work over the 
winter break on finalizing an emergency national security supplemental. 
The supplemental package is a national necessity, with critical aid to 
help Ukraine defeat Putin, help Israel combat Hamas, provide needed 
assistance to innocent civilians in Gaza, and fix our broken 
immigration system.
  At the end of last year, I said Democrats would remain committed to 
finding a bipartisan agreement on the supplemental. The only way to get 
something done on an issue as hard as the border is through bipartisan 
cooperation, and we have kept our promise to work in good faith.
  Now, on the supplemental, it has been a very promising few days. We 
have made more progress in the past couple of days on the border than 
we have in the past few weeks. The work is not yet finished, but I am 
more hopeful right now--even more than I was a few days ago--that we 
can get something meaningful done on the border and pass the 
supplemental.
  Getting over the finish line is still not going to be easy. It will 
take continued compromise, good faith, and recognition from both sides 
that nobody is going to get everything they want.
  Immigration reform has always been one of the hardest issues facing 
the Senate. But our broken border and our national security are at 
stake in this supplemental, and we must do everything we can to reach 
an agreement.
  I urge my colleagues to continue their negotiations, and I want to 
thank them all for their good work to bring us to this point. Their 
example is an affirmation that the only way to get things done is 
through bipartisanship. So I urge them to stay the course until the 
work is done.