Central ND News

On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) appeared on PBS NewsHour to discuss the Senate's national security supplemental package. The package, which includes $118.28 billion in funding for Ukraine, Israel, and U.S. border security, has been a topic of intense debate and negotiation.

Speaking about the negotiating process, Senator Cramer expressed his concerns about the lack of transparency and formal committee review. He praised Senator James Lankford for his negotiation skills, stating, "If 'dead on arrival' is the standard [in Congress], there is not a lot of point in spending more political capital, when there are other priorities even in this bill that have to get funded, like support for Israel and support for Ukraine."

Senator Cramer emphasized the need for a more open and inclusive process, stating, "Four months of negotiating in good faith, but largely in secret, leading to final text, and then Chuck Schumer wants to put it on the floor right away [...] before everybody has had the chance to read the text."

When asked about navigating a divided government, Senator Cramer acknowledged the challenges but emphasized the importance of incremental change in the right direction. He expressed concerns about certain provisions in the bill, such as generous funding for legal counsel for illegal aliens and open-ended dollar amounts for sanctuary cities, stating, "Here we are going to reward the pull factor that attracts people in the first place to run this risk. The political will is not there right now."

Regarding the influence of former President Donald Trump on the border bill, Senator Cramer noted, "It's not irrelevant, the former president who demonstrated he could provide border security, in contrasting with the current president who is now going to be his opponent, who has done nothing except to let 10 million people illegally into the country and wave them on through."

Senator Cramer also addressed the Ukraine funding provisions in the supplemental bill. He explained, "Remember, the reason we have the border piece into this supplemental is because people who didn't want to support Ukraine insisted on it. [...] I love the fact that we had an opportunity to secure our border as well as Ukraine's. Both are really important, either together or separately, and I remain committed to that."

Expressing his views on the Biden administration's handling of Ukraine, Senator Cramer stated, "I think the [Biden] administration waited way too long and moved way too slowly to support Ukraine or maybe they would’ve won this war by now. It's still in our national best interest to provide them the lethal aid they need. I’d like to see us strip some of the humanitarian aid and direct government support and rather focus on helping them win the war. That’s what’s in America’s best interest."

In conclusion, Senator Cramer's interview on PBS NewsHour shed light on the Senate's national security supplemental package and the various concerns and priorities surrounding it. The need for a more transparent and inclusive process, the influence of former President Trump, and the importance of supporting both border security and Ukraine were all key points discussed by Senator Cramer.