Reasonable people can understand why Senator Susan Collins votes the way she does. She represents a diverse political group in Maine, yet she still manages to cast tough votes. However, Murkowski’s situation is different. Alaska is not Maine.
While I support funding to secure our borders and protect the homeland, I do not support bypassing the annual appropriations process by providing funding for multiple years in a manner that diminishes both congressional direction and oversight.
By choosing to appropriate funding for three fiscal years instead of one, this measure weakens the normal budgeting process and sets another precedent for avoiding it when we find ourselves in disagreement. In doing so, it reduces Congress’ ability to apply reasonable checks on immigration policy for the remainder of this administration and into the next.
Had this measure provided immigration funding for one year, included clear restrictions on what those funds can be used for, and eliminated any potential for taxpayer dollars to be allocated to the administration’s brazen ‘anti-weaponization’ fund, I likely would have voted for it. The final bill fell short on all of those fronts, so I opposed it.