The Senate advanced a $95 billion bill to aid Ukraine and Israel on Thursday despite divisions within the GOP on whether to move forward.
Senate Republicans denied the support needed to consider the legislation on Wednesday, demanding a series of amendment votes before allowing debate to proceed. Leadership began hours of negotiations over an agreement to unlock those amendments but punted on the vote as the evening approached.
Enough Republicans relented from their blockade by Thursday morning, however, for the motion to advance. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) quickly brought the legislation to the floor as the Senate convened at noon.
It succeeded 67-32, with a majority of Republicans opposed.
Schumer initially moved a similar Ukraine bill on Wednesday that included a border compromise negotiated in the Senate. But most Republicans rejected the border component shortly after it was unveiled, dooming hopes for the broader legislation.
The retooled measure, which also includes money for Taiwan and humanitarian assistance in Gaza, is unlikely to pass the House in its current form. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), reflecting the views of his conference, has demanded that President Joe Biden articulate an exit strategy to the war in Ukraine before greenlighting more aid.
Nonetheless, the Thursday test vote marks a major step forward for the legislation after a monthslong impasse.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) had demanded border security in exchange for the Ukraine aid, but the eventual deal, struck between Senate negotiators and the White House, deeply divided the GOP conference in the upper chamber.
The agreement would have tightened asylum restrictions and imposed a border shutdown when crossings surge, but conservatives felt it would not actually have secured the border and merely represented a political win for Biden.
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Multiple Republicans have demanded votes on border amendments before final passage of the current defense bill, underscoring how immigration continues to split Republicans even as leadership attempts to move past the failed deal.
The Senate had initially planned on a two-week recess starting Friday, but consideration of the legislation is likely to continue into next week after Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) announced he would not consent to a time agreement that would expedite passage.
