'Don’t be ignorant': Senate Republicans bristle at Trump calling negotiations a 'betrayal'

Multiple Republican members of the US Senate are pushing back on former President Donald Trump dismissing their efforts to reach a bipartisan solution to border security as a "betrayal."

Trump has been pressuring Republicans behind the scenes about not supporting any efforts to secure the border while President Joe Biden is in office. The former president prefers instead to delay any legislation concerning immigration until January of 2025, when he would take office should he win a second term in November. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) has already vowed that any legislation that comes out of the Democratic-run US Senate would be "dead on arrival" in his chamber.

On Wednesday, CNN congressional reporter Manu Raju interviewed Sen. James Lankford (R-Oklahoma) — who is the lead immigration negotiator for Republicans — on Capitol Hill about Trump's derisive comments.

POLL: Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?

RAJU: The former president calls this a "betrayal." Is that a — what do you think of that characterization?

LANKFORD: It's certainly not a betrayal, actually. We've got to deal with issues of the law. That how we actually deal with things in America.

Raju also spoke with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), who appeared indignant at the suggestion that the former president wouldn't like the bill, as he hadn't even seen its contents.

"Does he have access to the bill?" Cassidy asked Raju, who said it "doesn't seem that way." The senator then reiterated that the bill "hasn't been released."

READ MORE: Here are the details of the new bipartisan border security bill Trump doesn't want passed

"How does he know it's a betrayal if he hasn't read it?" Cassidy said. "Don't be ignorant."

Raju attempted to ask Speaker Johnson about the legislation while he was debriefing CNN host Dana Bash about his conversations with Republicans, but Johnson ignored him as he held a phone up to his ear (with the phone screen facing outward). This prompted Raju to politely chuckle while Bash used air-quotes, mocking Johnson for being "on the phone."

Watch Raju's exchange with Republicans below, or by clicking this link.