


The Senate will stay in session next week as negotiators seek to reach a deal on the border that would unlock billions in new aid for Ukraine.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told members at a conference lunch on Thursday that the chamber would leave for the weekend but return on Monday despite a scheduled break for the Christmas recess. He announced the cancellation from the Senate floor shortly thereafter.
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The move is, in part, a matter of unfinished business. The Senate has yet to approve an extension of the Federal Aviation Administration, whose funding expires on Dec. 31. But it is also seen as a way to pressure Republicans to reach a deal on the border.
Schumer announced that he would hold another vote on President Joe Biden's supplemental funding request next week, whether there is a border deal or not.
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Republicans dismissed the notion of staying through the recess. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), one of the lead GOP negotiators for the border working group, told reporters on Wednesday morning it was not "remotely possible" to get a deal done before the new year, while Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) expressed a preference to be called back into Washington should the need arise.
Republicans have the upper hand in talks — Biden desperately wants more than $60 billion in aid for Ukraine and is underwater in polling on his handling of the border — but Democrats are betting that keeping senators from returning home, as well as fresh engagement from the White House, will pressure the GOP to accept the concessions that have already been given.
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