On Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) argued that border security is “something President Biden has pushed for for a long time, as well as immigration reform issues.” But that linking that to Ukraine aid, “I fear, is going to mean that we don’t get the Ukrainians the equipment they need, when they need it. We need to deal with both the issues, but tying them together in this way, I think has been harmful.”
Host Andrea Mitchell asked, “We’re seeing an escalation of the fighting in Ukraine. So, is there any progress over this recess on coming up with an agreement on a deal for Ukraine?”
Van Hollen answered, “Well, Andrea, this underscores the urgency of getting the Ukrainian people the assistance and the military equipment they need to defend themselves against Putin’s aggression. … The talks have been ongoing with respect to border security, something President Biden has pushed for for a long time, as well as immigration reform issues. But linking these two issues, providing the Ukrainians the help they need against Putin and the border security issues, I fear, is going to mean that we don’t get the Ukrainians the equipment they need, when they need it. We need to deal with both the issues, but tying them together in this way, I think has been harmful. We are working to try to resolve it.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett