Speaker meets Biden and tells him there must be CHANGE at the border: Mike Johnson says the ‘status quo is unacceptable’ at White House talks over the migrant crisis and Ukraine

House Speaker Mike Johnson called for sweeping changes in border policy as he spoke with President Joe Biden and congressional leaders at the White House about the billions the president wants for Ukraine and Israel.

Meeting at the White House for the second time as chairman, Johnson described a “national security and humanitarian catastrophe” at the border, something he said he expressed to the president.

“There are concerns about the safety, security and sovereignty of Ukraine, but the American people have the same concerns about our own domestic sovereignty and our safety, and our security,” he said after a meeting between the president and the “big four ‘. “Congressional leaders.

He called for a return to the Trump administration’s “remain in Mexico” policy and an “end to catch and release.”

‘We are not insisting on a particular name for a piece of legislation, but we are insisting that the elements must be real. The House is ready to take action. But legislation must solve the problem,” he said.

His comments came on a day the House voted to convict Biden over the border crisis.

Biden met with leaders about his stalled $106 billion additional funding request. It includes funds for Ukraine, which have been frozen since last year due to the fierce war against entrenched Russian invaders, as well as funds for Israel, humanitarian aid for the Palestinians and border financing.

Deep divisions exist over how to handle the border crisis, and some Republicans have expressed concerns about further U.S. support for Ukraine, calling for more oversight and pushing for any “blank check.”

Johnson, who has a razor-thin margin in the House of Representatives, spoke in generalities about Ukraine

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York put the chance of an agreement at 50 percent. He spoke alongside Hakeem Jeffries, House Minority Leader from New York,

The US no longer has authority to continue providing Ukraine with the air defense and weapons it says it needs

Johnson said there was a “national security and humanitarian catastrophe” at the border

Ukraine is struggling with repeated Russian missile attacks

“We understand the need to finance Ukraine and we want to say that the status quo is unacceptable. We need the commander in chief of this country, the President of the United States, to show strength, not weakness, on the world stage.

‘We cannot continue with the current status quo. We understand the importance of what is needed,” Johnson said.

He then appeared to call for greater responsibility for U.S. aid.

“There are certain things that are necessary to ensure that we want the questions answered about the strategy, about the end game and about the responsibility of America’s precious treasure,” he said. “We understand that all of these things are important, but we must insist that the border is the top priority.”

With Johnson failing to bash the proposal, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, speaking separately along with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, struck an optimistic tone.

“There’s a lot of agreement around the table that we need to do Ukraine and we need to work on the border,” Schumer said.

“I am more optimistic than ever before that we can reach an agreement.

He said the chances were “greater than half – and that’s the first time I can say that.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was at the White House but did not address the media.

The White House said the meeting was to “discuss the critical importance of his additional national security request.”