The Senate failed again to move forward with a bill to fund parts of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), resulting in a nearly six-week shutdown. President Donald Trump announced he would sign an executive order directing DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to pay TSA agents during the shutdown, potentially easing the urgency for Congress to reach a deal. The latest vote, with a tally of 53-47 falling short of the necessary 60 votes, marks the seventh unsuccessful attempt to advance the legislation.
Lawmakers are deadlocked in negotiations to fund various affected parts of the DHS, including TSA, Cisa, the coast guard, and Fema. Senate Majority Leader John Thune presented the Republicans’ latest proposal as a final offer, which Democrats rejected due to their demands for stronger guardrails on federal immigration enforcement. Trump declared a national emergency to pay 50,000 affected airport security officers and vowed to end “Democrat Chaos at the Airports.”
While Trump’s order is expected to alleviate immediate pressure, it is seen as a short-term solution by some. Republican leaders in the Senate are working on drafting text to fund as much of the DHS as possible in hopes of passing it unanimously. Senate Democrats proposed funding DHS with new immigration enforcement reforms, but GOP lawmakers dismissed the offer. The House passed a GOP bill to reopen the DHS for the third time, with bipartisan support.
ICE, which received funding through Trump’s policy bill, has been less impacted by the funding shortfalls faced by other DHS components. TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill highlighted historic wait times at airports and the financial struggles of TSA employees due to missed paychecks. Many TSA staff members have reportedly resorted to extreme measures like sleeping in cars and selling blood to make ends meet.
In a separate development, a proposed amendment to require photo identification for voters failed to advance in the Senate, with no Democratic support. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the amendment as imposing the strictest voter ID law in America.
