House Votes to Fund DHS After Record Shutdown – But Not ICE and Border Patrol
After weeks of delay, the house voted to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, but not its immigration enforcement operations. the measure passed quickly by voice vote and was sent to President Donald Trump to sign, ending the longest U.S. government shutdown in history.
The White House warned that the temporary funding Trump used for parts of DHS would soon expire, raising concerns about possible airport disruptions.
The shutdown stemmed from disagreements over whether to include funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol alongside other DHS components like the TSA. While the Senate had already approved a bipartisan package, Democrats refused to fund ICE/Border Patrol without changes after two U.S. citizens were killed by federal agents during protests against an immigration crackdown. Republicans, meanwhile, would not accept funding for TSA and other DHS agencies without ICE and Border Patrol included.
To resolve the impasse, Republicans chose to pursue immigration enforcement funding separately through budget reconciliation, a process expected to take weeks. House Republicans also adopted a budget resolution focused on providing $70 billion for immigration enforcement and deportations for the remainder of Trump’s term, while limiting Democrats’ ability to block the funding. one Republican criticized separating immigration enforcement money as disrespectful to ICE and border Patrol personnel.
After weeks of delay, the House voted Thursday to fund much of the Department of Homeland Security, but not its immigration enforcement operations, and send the bipartisan package to President Donald Trump to sign, ending the longest agency shutdown in history.
The White House had warned that the temporary funding Trump had tapped to pay Transportation Security Administration and other agency personnel would “soon run out,” and that sparked new threats of airport disruptions.
DHS has been without routine funds since Feb. 14, causing hardship for workers, though much of Trump’s immigration agenda that is central to the dispute is being funded separately.
The House swiftly voted by voice, without a formal roll call, to pass the measure.
The House’s narrow Republican majority has repeatedly stalled out under House Speaker Mike Johnson, with his own party tangled in internal disputes on a range of pending issues, including homeland security funding.
While the Senate unanimously approved the bipartisan package a month ago, the bill languished in the House.
Democrats refused to fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol without changes to those operations after the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents during protests against an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.
Republicans would not go along with a plan pushed by Democrats to fund TSA and the other parts of DHS without the money for ICE and Border Patrol.
To break the impasse, Republicans in both the House and Senate decided to tackle the immigration enforcement funding on their own through what is called budget reconciliation, a cumbersome weekslong process ahead.
By beginning that budget process Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, was able to unlock a broader bipartisan bill for TSA agents and the rest of DHS.
House Republicans late Wednesday adopted a budget resolution on a largely party-line vote, 215-211, that is focused on eventually providing $70 billion for immigration enforcement and deportations for the remainder of Trump’s time in office and ensuring Democrats can no longer block funding. Trump’s term ends in January 2029.
One key Republican, Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, said isolating the immigration-related money on a separate track is “offensive to the men and women who serve in ICE and Border Patrol, and are serving this country every single day.”
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
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