The Democratic-led U.S. Senate moved towards the final passage of a $95.34 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan on Monday, amid growing doubts about the legislation’s fate in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
The lawmakers voted 66-33 to exceed a 60-vote margin and sweep aside the last procedural hurdle before final consideration of the bill. Senate leaders had expected a vote on passage sometime on Wednesday.
But on Monday night, hardline Republicans opposed to further U.S. aid for Ukraine took to the Senate floor for a marathon of speeches that aides said would likely exhaust their debate time early Tuesday morning and allow Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to move to passage later in the day.
Both houses of Congress must approve the legislation before Democratic President Joe Biden can sign it into law.
But the bill could face long odds in the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson said his Republican majority wanted conservative provisions to address a record-level flow of migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border.
“In the absence of having received any single border policy change from the Senate, the House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters,” Johnson said in a statement issued just before the Senate began voting on Monday.