Senate agrees to fund DHS, except ICE and Border Patrol, in bid to end 40-day shutdown
WASHINGTON — The Senate unanimously agreed Friday to fund the Department of Homeland Security, but without funding immigration enforcement and deportation operations.
Senators approved the package at 2:20 a.m. by voice vote after a marathon session, hours after President Donald Trump announced he would sign an order to immediately pay Transportation Security Administration officers.
After 42 days of unfunding, they were left without pay, leading many people to stop working and causing extreme delays at airports of up to four hours.
The deal follows arduous bipartisan negotiations that have happened in fits and starts over the past six weeks. He is expected to have Trump’s support, but his future in the House is uncertain.
It would fund all of DHS, except for ICE enforcement and removal operations and part of Customs and Border Protection, which Democrats have refused to vote for without significant reforms to enforcement practices.
Referring to the possibility that the House will consider the package later Friday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said “I hope they’ll be there and we can open up at least a large part of the government again, and then we’ll go from there.” He said he texted President Mike Johnson this evening.
Thune separately blamed Democrats. “President Trump should never have stepped in to save TSA workers and America’s airlines. We are here because, thanks to Democrats’ determined refusal to reach a deal, there will be no Homeland Security funding bill this year.”
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Speaking after the vote, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said, “In the wake of the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, Senate Democrats have been clear. No blank check for lawless ICE and Border Patrol. This long-awaited deal funds the TSA, Coast Guard, FEMA, CISA, strengthens security at the border and ports of entry, and keeps Americans safe.
He added that the deal “could have been reached weeks ago if Republicans had not objected.”
The White House and Republicans have refused to accede to Democrats’ demands to restrict Trump’s immigration agenda. So they agreed to remove ICE funding from this measure and continue this in a separate bill.
Democrats opposed efforts to pass this bill, preventing it from moving forward.
Senate Republicans held an open vote for hours Thursday as the two sides continued their negotiations, after trading offers for days.
Trump meanwhile announced that he would direct new Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to “immediately pay our TSA agents to deal with this emergency.”
Trump’s support could help rally votes in the Republican-controlled House, despite some conservative misgivings about splitting ICE funding.
This provision faces an uncertain future in the House.
The lower house can either debate and vote against Senate-passed measures in the Rules Committee before introducing them with a simple majority, or President Johnson can introduce them “under recess,” meaning two-thirds of the House votes in favor of introducing them.
The House was scheduled to hold an independent vote at 10 a.m. before going on vacation.
TSA agents missed their first full paycheck in mid-March, leading many people to stop working. TSA agent response rates have exceeded 11% nationally, and at some airports, they exceed 40%.
Trump sent ICE agents to airports to help the TSA earlier this week. Unlike TSA agents, ICE agents continue to receive paychecks during the partial shutdown thanks to funding from the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill that Trump signed into law last year.
We’d like to hear from you on how you’re experiencing the partial government shutdown, whether you’re a TSA agent who can’t work right now or a federal employee feeling the effects at your agency. Please contact us at tips@nbcuni.com Or contact us here.
Democrats have demanded changes to ICE following the surge of immigration agents in Minneapolis and the killing of two U.S. citizens by federal agents this year.
In social media posts reacting to Trump’s announcement, some Democrats said the president could have acted sooner.
“Let it be made public: Trump could have signed the executive order to pay the TSA on day one,” Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., wrote on X. “TSA and federal workers have not had to miss a single paycheck.
Trump this week rejected a way out of closing DHS that would have funded all of DHS except ICE.
