Senate GOP split threatens bipartisan border deal as Trump looms large

Senate Republicans demanded that President Biden's national security funding package for Ukraine be tied to policy changes to address the crisis at the southwest border. But now that negotiators say they are ready to release details of a bipartisan plan to reduce the surge of migrants at the border, Republican divisions could scuttle the plan.

Months of negotiations between the Republicans, Democrats and the Biden administration officials are now threatened by politics. Former President Trump, the GOP's likely 2024 presidential nominee, has been publicly slamming the deal and urging lawmakers to oppose it.

Negotiators started the week promising to release a bill in the coming days. But by Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to signal he's ready to move on, and focus on getting money to two key U.S. allies at war.

"It's time for us to move something, hopefully including the border agreement, but we need to get help to Israel and Ukraine, quickly," McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters.

McConnell has consistently argued that divided government is the moment to extract demands on border policy from Democrats.

Pressed about what voters would think of GOP lawmakers who sink a bill because Trump directed them to, McConnell sidestepped the question. "I still favor trying to make law when you can" and said what the bipartisan group is working on is better than current immigration law, adding, "you're asking me, a question I can't answer right now, which is the fate of it."

Senators already know key details

The top Democratic negotiator working on a border plan, Chris Murphy, D-Conn., has signaled for days that the deal is basically done, but getting sign off from the GOP to move ahead is the hold up.

"We