Republicans in Congress say they have a deal to end the record-long shutdown at DHS : NPR
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., joined by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks to members of the media Oct. 7, 2025. GOP leaders said Wednesday they have found a path forward to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
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Republican leaders in the Senate and House have revived a stalled plan to fund the Department of Homeland Security after a record 47-day funding hiatus.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said in a joint statement Wednesday that the House will take up a measure passed by the Senate last week to fund most of DHS, except Immigration, Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol, through the end of September.
Republicans would then attempt to fund ICE and the Border Patrol for three years using a party-line budget reconciliation bill that would not require Democratic support.
“By following this two-track approach, the Republican Congress will fully reopen the department, ensure that all federal workers are paid, and specifically fund immigration enforcement and border security for the next three years so that these law enforcement activities can continue unimpeded,” Thune and Johnson wrote.
The deal comes nearly a week after House Republicans rejected an identical plan, refusing to take up the Senate-passed measure and instead passing a short-term, 60-day funding bill for all of DHS that had little chance of overcoming Democratic opposition in the Senate.
Johnson called the deal a “joke” and President Trump refused to publicly endorse it. Trump had previously resisted any agenda that did not include his push to reform federal elections, known as the Save America Act.
“I think whatever deal they make, I’m not really happy with it,” Trump told reporters last week.
Democrats hailed the deal as consistent with their pledge not to give any more money to ICE without reforms after immigration enforcement agents killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis. But the deal doesn’t include any of the policy demands that Democrats insist on., like banning masks for immigration enforcement officers and requiring warrants issued by a judge, not just the agency, to enter homes.
“For days, Republican divisions have derailed a bipartisan deal, making American families pay the price for their dysfunction,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote in a statement Wednesday. “Throughout this fight, Senate Democrats never wavered.”
Trump appeared to endorse the revived plan earlier Wednesday, writing on social media that he wanted a party-line bill to fund immigration enforcement to be on his desk by June 1.
“We will work as quickly and as focused as possible to rebuild funding for our border agents and ICE, and radical left Democrats won’t be able to stop us,” Trump wrote.
Despite the shutdown, ICE was little affected because Republican lawmakers last year approved $75 billion for ICE through another party-line budget reconciliation bill.
Congress is on a two-week recess, but the Senate and House could decide to fund all of DHS, except ICE and CBP, as soon as Thursday, using a procedure known as unanimous consent that allows chambers to bypass a formal vote as long as no members object.
Even during the holidays, when most members are not in Washington, it could be unpredictable, especially in the House, where many radical conservatives oppose a deal that doesn’t fully fund DHS.
“Let’s keep it simple: Caving in to the Democrats and not paying CBP and ICE means agreeing to defund law enforcement and leave our borders wide open,” Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., a member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, wrote on X. “If that’s the vote, I’m NO.”
If a member objects, it may require waiting for another vote when all members return from break.
Claudia Grisales contributed reporting.
