Senate negotiators reached an agreement Friday on a proposal to overhaul the asylum system at the U.S. border with Mexico. That clears the way for Democratic and Republican Senate leaders to begin the difficult task of convincing Congress to pass a national security package that would include dozens of member states. billions of dollars for Ukraine and immigration enforcement, as well as funding for Israel and other U.S. allies.

Senator Christopher S. Murphy of Connecticut

,

the lead Democratic negotiator, posted on social media Friday that an agreement had been reached and that the text of the bill would be released this weekend. Senators are still working to finalize the remainder of the package, which was initiated by a request from President Biden for $110 billion for war aid to allies, domestic defense production, humanitarian assistance for conflicts around the world and managing the influx of migrants in the US. -Mexican border.

Senators are preparing for a key test vote on the package next week, but it already faces a steep climb through Congress. Republicans in both chambers have resisted compromises on border security policy. Senate Republicans had initially demanded that the package include changes to border policy, but Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, has become an outspoken opponent of the legislation.

Republicans said the border is a priority and we need to craft a bipartisan bill to help control the border. We did that. We have a deal, Murphy said on platform X, formerly Twitter. He added: “It’s time to decide.”

The core group of negotiators has worked for months to craft a package that can win support from a bipartisan coalition of moderates in Congress. As they prepared to scrutinize the details of the bill, it remained to be seen whether they could muster the required support from both sides of the aisle.

The criticism is based on rumors and misconceptions, said Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent from Arizona who was central in drafting the bill.

on

Thursday.

Senate Democrats, increasingly wary of the political vulnerabilities Biden and their party face on immigration, have grown more comfortable with the contours of the package, though progressive and

Spanish Latino

Members of the House of Representatives are still expected to overwhelmingly oppose the border policy changes if they pass the Senate.

Many conservatives on the right are opposed

both

continued funding for Ukraine and compromises on border enforcement. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has repeatedly stated that he will not compromise on tough

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border enforcement measures, but he has said he won’t make a final judgment until he can read the bill.

As GOP lawmakers see the political fallout from passing immigration bills in the middle of an election year, many Trump allies have argued that Congress doesn’t even need to act because presidents already have sufficient authority at the border. And in a sign that they will try to prevent the bill from advancing to a final vote, some have lobby leaders giving them weeks to make further changes through committee hearings.

I think we are virtually hostage to the Republican leadership. The Republican leadership has forced this on us, Senator Tommy Tuberville

(R-Ala.), a Republican from Alabama,

said on Thursday

Steve Stephen K.

Bannon’s War Room podcast. And if we don’t approve something now, we’re going to look bad in the eyes of the American people. But I’m just telling people now that we don’t need a border policy. We already have one intact.”

According to Sinema, the legislation largely focuses on a challenge

both

Republican and Democratic administrations have grappled with: How to suppress the growing number of people coming to the border seeking protection from persecution because of their race, religion, political beliefs, or membership in a discriminated group.

Asylum is an important part of international law and the U.S. ability to promote human rights, but the system has become overwhelmed in recent years with asylum applications, leading to years of waits for asylum cases to be processed even as many migrants succeed ultimately unable to prove this asylum case.

The bill seeks to address this problem by dramatically speeding up the process, making it more difficult for people to enter the asylum system and denying them the opportunity to apply for asylum if illegal border crossings become unmanageable by authorities. Most migrants seeking asylum would receive an initial interview, known as a credible fear screening, within days of arriving at the border. They would then either be deported or given work permits while waiting months for their cases to be heard by an immigration judge.

Immigration advocates are concerned that the proposal would deprive asylum seekers of the opportunity to make a full case, especially when they have just completed an arduous and often traumatic journey to get to the US.

Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.