Federal court orders Texas to remove buoy barriers in Rio Grande
A panel of three federal judges ruled on Friday that Texas must remove floating buoy barriers that had been placed in the Rio Grande River at the direction of Governor Greg Abbott to prevent migrants from crossing the border through the river. They declined to grant a request by the governor’s office to overturn a previous ruling by a federal judge that stated that the barriers were illegal. The appeals court had allowed the buoys to remain in place pending this final decision.
Senate immigration negotiations stall, blocking the passage of Biden’s requested aid package for Israel and Ukraine
Republican Senators blocked President Biden’s spending request that would provide federal aid for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan. They want to add policy that would toughen U.S. asylum and humanitarian parole laws, making it more difficult for people to enter the country through these pathways. The administration’s spending request includes funding for border security but does not include any policy changes. “The holdup on the security supplemental has not been over Ukraine or Israel or over the Indo-Pacific but over the Republican decision to inject hard-right immigration measures into the debate,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). “We’re willing to make concessions, but we will not keep going in circles if Republicans aren’t interested in meeting us halfway.”
Senate Democrats released an emergency spending bill on Tuesday. It includes funding for Israel, Ukraine, and U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region. It also includes funding for border security and bipartisan legislation to address fentanyl trafficking.
Republicans are expected to bring a new offer to Democrats in order to work toward passage of the spending request. “This is not the end,” said Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), the top GOP negotiator. “Reset and say: ‘Let’s keep doing the work.’”
November refugee admissions numbers released
The U.S. resettled 7,468 refugees in November, continuing a good start to resettlement numbers for FY2024, but lower than the average number of 10,417 needed per month to reach the refugee admissions cap of 125,000. People from Africa and Near East and South Asia represent the highest numbers of those resettled in November at 2,713 and 2,790 respectively.