Senate to vote on DHS funding as Congress returns without a deal on ICE reforms
Washington — The Senate is set to take procedural vote Tuesday on funding for the Department of Homeland Security as a partial government shutdown stretches into an 11th day.
But a swift end to the impasse appears out of reach as lawmakers return to Washington following a weeklong recess without a deal to reform federal immigration agencies.
President Trump is set to deliver the State of the Union address Tuesday evening. The Senate's procedural vote is set for 5 p.m.
Congress' failure to reach an agreement on how to fund DHS prompted a funding lapse for the department, which also oversees the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard. The major sticking point has been over Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. Democrats have pledged to withhold funds unless they are reined in.
Congressional leaders had appeared hopeful that negotiators could reach a deal while lawmakers were away on recess. The two sides have been trading proposals in recent days, with the latest counteroffer coming from Democrats last week. But a White House official said after receiving the offer that the parties remained far apart.
Republicans have pointed to the administration's efforts to turn down the temperature following the deadly shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal agents in Minneapolis last month, including the recent move to bring the immigration crackdown to an end. But Democrats have remained adamant about the need for broader reforms.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries reiterated Democrats' demands on Sunday, including requiring judicial warrants for arrests, independent investigations and barring immigration agents from entering sensitive locations. The New York Democrat said "we believe that this moment should be used to make dramatic changes to ICE that are bold, that are transformational and that are meaningful."
"These are basic, commonsense demands that have been laid out, and unfortunately, rather than dramatically reform ICE, the administration has decided to shut down FEMA, shut down the TSA and shut down the Coast Guard," Jeffries said on "Fox News Sunday."
ICE and CBP received tens of billions of dollars in separate funding last year, meaning the shutdown is having minimal impact on immigration enforcement. But the funding lapse is set to begin impacting other parts of DHS, with FEMA and TSA workers and the Coast Guard — most of whom are deemed essential and have continued to work during the shutdown — expected to receive only a partial paycheck later this week.
Over the weekend, the effects of the shutdown seemed poised to be felt more broadly at airports. The department announced it would suspend TSA PreCheck, before reversing course. Still, Global Entry and courtesy escorts for members of Congress are on pause for the time being, DHS said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, responded to the moves Sunday, calling them "bullying tactics."
"The Trump administration is choosing to inflict pain on the public instead of adopting common-sense ICE reforms," Schumer said in a statement.
The procedural vote in the Senate on Tuesday comes after the chamber failed to advance the same measure shortly before the DHS funding deadline earlier this month. All but one Democrat — Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania — opposed moving forward with the bill, while support from at least seven Democrats would be needed to move forward.
