Senate votes to advance foreign aid package with assistance for Ukraine and Israel

The Senate on Thursday voted to advance a $95.3 billion foreign aid package that provides assistance for Israel and Ukraine after Republicans blocked a broader bill that included border security measures earlier this week – but a debate over amendments continues to slow down passing the legislation out of the chamber.

The major foreign aid package now moves one step closer to a final vote, which could still be days away. All senators need to agree to a timing agreement to swiftly pass legislation out of the chamber, and opposition to foreign aid from key senators is likely to slow down the process. Since Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has long opposed foreign aid, said he will not agree to speed up this process, it will be a laborious path for the Senate to finally pass the bill.

“I think we should stay here as long as it takes,” Paul told CNN’s Manu Raju. “If that takes a week or a month, I’ll force them to stay here to discuss why they think the border of Ukraine is more important than the US border.”

Thursday’s vote advanced the bill on a tally of 67 to 32. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called it “a good first step,” saying that “failure to pass this bill would only embolden autocrats like Putin … who want nothing more than America’s decline.”

If the bill is eventually passed by the Senate, it would next go to the House, where it’s unclear when or whether Speaker Mike Johnson would hold a vote on it. Many House Republicans are opposed to further aid to Ukraine.

Senators were supposed to be on recess next week, but Schumer said on Thursday that the Senate will keep working on the bill “until the job is done.”

The foreign aid package includes billions of dollars to support Ukraine and for