Washington DC, June 27: In a bid to address migrant crisis at the southern border along with Mexico, the US Senate on Wednesday passed a USD 4.6 billion worth emergency funding bill.
According to ANI news reports, the $4.6 billion aid funding would provide an upper hand to President Donald Trump in negotiation with the House Democrats, slate to face pressure to act immediately.
In his official Twitter account handle, the US president said, “The Republican Senate just passed bipartisan humanitarian assistance for our Southern Border, 84-8! In addition to aid, Congress must close the catastrophic loopholes that are driving the Crisis. We must end incentives for Smuggling Children, Trafficking Women, and Selling Drugs.”
The Republican Senate just passed bipartisan humanitarian assistance for our Southern Border, 84-8! In addition to aid, Congress must close the catastrophic loopholes that are driving the Crisis. We must end incentives for Smuggling Children, Trafficking Women, and Selling Drugs.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 26, 2019
The bill has received 84-4 votes in less than a day after the US House of Representatives passed a similar measure but invited additional restrictions over how the Trump administration could make use of funds. The House measure was dismissed in the Senate panel.
Al-Jazeera news agency has quoted Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito as saying, “The topline numbers of the House bill may be similar but the policy implications are vast. Time is of the essence here.”
Capito further added, “We may not agree on how we got here or how best to move forward but we agree there is a crisis, a major crisis, and that the resources are needed now.”
The development comes after a viral internet report of a drowning man with his daughter in the Rio Grande waters, underlining the human crisis toll at the US-Mexico border.
The passed bill would offer USD 145 million to back the American military’s operations at the southern border – a move repeatedly strongly opposed by the House Democrats. It would also offer USD 793 million to enhance the living of the migrants at the detention site and border stations along with another USD 112 million for the migrant care.
Furthermost, the Senate would allocate about USD 2.88 billion for the Health and Human Services Department’s programme.