Chuck Schumer, right, is expected to bring back a GOP-opposed border measure ahead of the 2024 elections, which Mitch McConnell, left, suggested is his motivation. (Getty Images)
Schumer began a daily countdown earlier this month, tracking the number of days that have gone by since the immigration bill failed to garner the 60 votes necessary to move forward.
"It’s been 98 days since Donald Trump and the Republicans blocked the strongest, most comprehensive border security bill in a generation. And they still don’t have any plan except exploiting the border for Trump’s political gain," he wrote Wednesday on X in the latest tally.
This comes after a source familiar with the discussion told Fox News Digital that the majority leader relayed to Democrats last week his strong consideration for bringing the bill back to the floor, just months ahead of the 2024 elections.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., noted the renewed focus on the border measure in his own floor remarks. He pointed to months of polling revealing the importance of the immigration issue to voters going into the elections, telling colleagues, "perhaps it’s not a coincidence that the Democratic leader has indicated his intention to once again turn the Senate’s focus to the border crisis and to portions of the bipartisan legislation Senator Lankford helped produce earlier this year."
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Lankford, left, and Sinema, right, were designated negotiators for the bill. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., discussed the potential revival of the measure, telling Fox News host Maria Bartiromo that Democrats weren't operating in good faith during the negotiations. "Democrats were always negotiating for political cover with their failed border bill," he wrote on X.
"That will still be the case if they decide to bring it up again. It was an awful bill, that’s why it died within 24 hours of it being introduced," he added.
Republicans have also pointed to the fact that the House has previously passed a preferred border measure that would re-institute a policy requiring asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while awaiting hearings and resume construction of the border wall, among other things. A similar measure also touts strong support in the House and would similarly "institute Remain in Mexico, reform the parole and asylum laws, and build the border wall," per a spokesperson from the office of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
DEMS PLAN TO REVIVE BORDER BILL REJECTED BY REPUBLICANS AHEAD OF NOVEMBER ELECTION
The seven most competitive Senate races in 2024, per non-partisan political handicapper the Cook Political Report, are for seats that are currently held by those caucusing with Democrats in Michigan, Arizona, Montana, Ohio, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. (Getty Images)
Of those polled, 28% said immigration was the country's top issue. This was the first time immigration emerged as the most important issue since 2019.
As McConnell alluded to, Democrats in the Senate face the worst election map in years, with several incumbents in competitive races in swing states. Schumer and the Democrats enjoy a slim majority in the upper chamber, with 51 senators caucusing with Democrats to 49 Republicans.
The seven most competitive Senate races in 2024, per non-partisan political handicapper the Cook Political Report, are for seats that are currently held by those caucusing with Democrats in Michigan, Arizona, Montana, Ohio, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
Given the difficult election map, Republicans face a significant opportunity to regain the majority in the chamber come 2025, especially as the vulnerable incumbents are prompted to defend the border under Democratic rule.
Julia Johnson is a politics writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business, leading coverage of the U.S. Senate. She was previously a politics reporter at the Washington Examiner.
Follow Julia's reporting on X at @JuliaaJohnson_ and send tips to Julia.Johnson@fox.com.
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