Warner, Kaine Statement on Budget Committee Advancing Partisan GOP Megabill

WASHINGTON– Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), members of the Senate Budget Committee, released the following statement after Senate Republicans voted to advance partisan budget legislation, which Warner and Kaine both opposed, that abandons the regular-order funding process and provides billions of dollars for President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda: “We’ve all seen the effects of the Trump-Vance immigration agenda: Renée Good and Alex Pretti shot and killed in broad daylight by federal agents, families rounded up, and children separated from their parents. Americans want to feel safe and want lower costs—but instead of focusing on that, Republicans have decided to approve billions of dollars in new DHS funding through a partisan process, the same one they used last year to give ICE and Border Patrol $140 billion with no safeguards and to cut taxes for the wealthy. Now they are using it again to enlarge the ICE and Border Patrol slush fund by another $70 billion. “As families across the country are struggling with rising costs for groceries, housing, health care, and energy, Senate Republicans are also attempting to add another billion in taxpayer dollars to pay for President Trump’s ballroom—once again showing Americans exactly where their priorities lie. We call on our colleagues to vote against this bill when it comes to the floor.” ###