Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) likened working with Democrats on border security to “negotiating with the arsonist” on how to put out a fire they started.

Senate negotiations regarding border security have been at a near standstill, but leaders on both sides of the aisle are optimistic a deal can get done. Johnson placed the blame on Democrats and President Joe Biden’s administration for stalled talks while speaking on Newsnation’s the Hill on Tuesday.

“I don’t like government shutdowns, but I will say the main problem we have in negotiations is, in effect, we’re negotiating with the arsonist and trying to negotiate how to put out the fire he started,” Johnson said.

“It’s a big problem; I mean, we have an administration — we have a president of the United States who wants an open border, that caused this problem. They’re the ones who removed all the successful policies that secured the border under President Trump,” he added.

When pressed on the House of Representatives not passing anything new on border security during the negotiations, the Wisconsin Republican discussed how the House had passed a bill that would have done a “great deal” for border security. He again blamed the Biden administration for not working to secure the border amid the negotiations.

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Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) is set to convene a meeting of his fellow Senate Republicans on Wednesday as several members of the conference remain skeptical of border security negotiations. Some GOP holdouts are worried about further aid to Ukraine being attached to the potentially bipartisan bill.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) was optimistic on Tuesday on border talks, saying that talks had progressed more in recent days than in previous weeks. Schumer said on the Senate floor that he is “hopeful that we’re going to get something meaningful done” on the matter.