Republican lawmakers refuse to say whether they will shut government down over border crisis

Republican lawmakers at a press conference on border security refused to say whether or not they would shut the government down if they don't get proper border negotiations. 

"Law and Border" host Ben Bergquam asked the lawmakers while they were at the southern border in Texas to do a "show of hands" of who would vote to shut down the government if the crisis at the border continued to get worse. 

"We're not gonna do 'show of hands,'" one lawmaker responded to the question. "We're not in a classroom. We're not doing 'show of hands.'"

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., responded by saying that the House has been working tirelessly in order to get appropriations bills passed. 

"We have been working in earnest and in good faith with the Senate and the White House virtually everyday through the holiday trying to come to an agreement," Johnson said. "Negotiations are still ongoing. It's dragged on way too long, but the sooner we get that agreement, the sooner we'll be able to get those negotiations bills done."

He went on to add that the top two priorities for House Republicans are to shut down and secure the border and reduce government spending. 

While President Joe Biden has sought to secure additional funding for Israel and Ukraine amid the conflicts in both countries, Republicans in Congress have insisted the U.S. must not prioritize aid to foreign countries without addressing their own southern border crisis. GOP lawmakers hope to tie aid to Ukraine with significant reforms to the asylum system and funding to bolster border enforcement in the next spending package.

The Homeland Security Department revealed last month that the backlog of illegal aliens inside the U.S. has nearly doubled under Biden to over six million while arrests of suspected terrorists and violent offenders have also exploded.