Senate Bolts For Memorial Day, Punts Bill Funding Immigration Enforcement Until June
The Senate will not send a $72 billion Republican-led reconciliation bill to fund federal immigration enforcement before President Donald Trump’s deadline.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced Thursday that the chamber would head into the Memorial Day holiday without passing the reconciliation package, which Trump wanted on his desk by June 1, Thune’s office confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation. Republicans are currently fighting for a fund that could pay people who claim the justice system has been “weaponized” against them; Some Republicans have expressed concern that the fund will be used by Trump and his allies.
The plan would provide more than $30.73 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), $22.57 billion to Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and $2.5 billion in appropriations to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through 2029. Senate Republicans drafted the legislation in response to the 76-day shutdown of DHS after Democrats refused to fund the agency following shootings high-profile incidents involving immigration officials in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in January. (RELATED: Trump turns up pressure on John Thune, demands Senate leader fire parliamentarian)
The CBP/ICE funding bill will not be on President Trump’s desk by June 1, as he has said he wants.
The Senate goes home. Bad vibes on the Hill today. https://t.co/LP7rMRClMX
– Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) May 21, 2026
Regarding the fund, Thune and other Republicans, including Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, expressed skepticism about how the funds would be used. The fund is part of a settlement agreement between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) aimed at ending a civil lawsuit filed in January over the leak of his tax returns.
Thune told reporters Thursday that the Senate had not decided how to move forward with the fund, saying one option was to place guardrails on it. He also said they needed “clarity” on how the fund would operate.
“That would be an option, and so we’re obviously working and consulting with our members, and obviously the Department of Justice, the administration is going to come up with suggestions and ideas,” Thune said.
Trump also wanted to use the spending package to set aside $1 billion to boost Secret Service security during construction of the White House ballroom. However, the Senate was expected not to provide the funds for the ballroom after Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough struck it down for violating the Byrd Rule in a ruling issued Saturday.
MacDonough also struck down provisions regarding funding for ICE, CBP and DHS in a ruling issued Friday.
The House can also delay the reconciliation vote until after the Memorial Day holiday.
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