Dem Sen. Murphy on Border Bill Contradicting Biden Rhetoric: It’s ‘Middle Ground’ to Address Border ‘Chaos’

On Tuesday’s broadcast of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) responded to criticisms from Democrats that the Senate border bill contradicts President Joe Biden’s campaign rhetoric by stating that the bill is “finding middle ground” to address the “chaos” on the border.

Co-host Michel Martin asked, [relevant exchange begins around 2:10] “New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez (D) called it unacceptable. He said if this bill had come forward under Trump, Democrats would be outraged. What do you say to members of your own party…who are saying, look, this is the opposite of what President Biden says he stood for when he ran for office?”

Murphy responded, “I know Washington is kind of unfamiliar with an old-fashioned compromise that involves some Democrats voting no and some Republicans voting no, but that’s what we’ve done here. We are taking an issue that has long divided America and finding middle ground. But the truth of the matter is, most all Democrats are going to vote for this bill. There will be a handful of Democrats that will vote no, and I accept that. The problem is, right now, it looks as if most Republicans are going to vote against it as well, and the only way we can get this passed in the Senate is if you have a majority of Democrats and a majority of Republicans supporting it. And right now, most Republicans are prepared to listen to Donald Trump, who says he wants chaos to continue at the border because that will help him politically.”

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