Rand Paul vows to drag out Senate effort to pass $95 billion foreign aid package

The Senate is working to pass a $95.3 billion foreign aid bill with assistance for Ukraine and Israel, but it may be days until a final vote as GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has vowed to use arcane and complex chamber rules to slow the pace of passing a bill.

The chamber cleared a critical 60-vote threshold to advance the bill on Thursday. But without an agreement from all 100 senators to speed up the process and swiftly pass the legislation, the Senate is expected to work through the weekend with a final vote next week.

“I think we should stay here as long as it takes,” Paul told CNN’s Manu Raju. “If it takes a week or a month, I’ll force them to stay here to discuss why they think the border of Ukraine is more important than the US border.”

Lawmakers are moving forward with the foreign aid bill, however, after Republicans blocked a broader bill that would have combined foreign aid with a bipartisan border deal. Republicans had initially demanded that border security be part of the bill, but went on to reject the bipartisan deal amid forceful attacks on the measure by former President Donald Trump and top House Republicans.

Ahead of a final vote on the foreign aid package, a series of additional procedural votes are expected to take place, including one on Friday evening.

If the bill is eventually passed by the Senate, it would next go to the House, where it’s unclear when or whether Speaker Mike Johnson would hold a vote on it. Many House Republicans are opposed to further aid to Ukraine.

Senate Republicans are now divided over the foreign aid package, and some are pushing for amendments to make changes to the bill – including to add measures related to immigration and border policy.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Thursday’s vote to advance the bill a “good first step,” and said that Democrats hope to reach an agreement with Republicans over amendments. “We are going to keep working on this bill until the job is done,” he said.

The foreign aid package includes billions of dollars to support Ukraine and for security assistance for Israel, as well as humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza, the West Bank and Ukraine.

The bill includes $60 billion to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia, $14.1 billion in security assistance for Israel, $9.2 billion in humanitarian assistance and $4.8 billion to support regional partners in the Indo-Pacific region, among other provisions, according to the Senate Appropriations Committee.