WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement after Senate Republicans defeated a bipartisan bill to address the situation at the U.S. southern border:

“This failed vote is the epitome of Washington dysfunction: after years of bellyaching about the situation at the U.S. southern border, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have shut down a border bill authored by a member of their very own party. It’s been nearly 40 years since Congress last reformed our immigration system, and it shows. The dysfunction at the border, the illegal movement of fentanyl through our ports of entry, the broken system in place for fearful asylum seekers – it’s a shame that Congress would turn down the opportunity to tackle all of these challenges today with the first real bipartisan immigration compromise we’ve seen in over a decade. As the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I worry this failure to address the situation at the border will only serve the interests of bad actors looking to jeopardize our national security. I will continue to push for solutions to fix this broken system.”

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