In America: Congressional Democrats Will Block Spending Package Worth Trillions Due To Funding DHS
Another government shutdown may be imminent after another deadly ICE shooting in Minnesota last Saturday. The killing of Alex Pretti has intensified outrage among Democratic representatives over how the Department of Homeland Security has been operating within the country. As a result, the Senate may not pass the six-bill legislative package that includes $1.33 Trillion in funding for multiple sectors including the DHS. If the Senate cannot come to an agreement, the country is at risk of another partial government shutdown.
Six-Bill “Minibus” Passed The House, It Won’t Pass The Senate
The spending package contained six bills which received bipartisan support through the House of Representatives. The package includes funding for six unfinished bills for the Fiscal Year of 2026. Amongst the six bills, the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill is included. The Homeland Security Appropriations Bill, H.R. 4213, would be allocating tens of billions to the DHS for departmental management, border security, expansion of immigration enforcement and investigations, cyber security development, and domestic disaster/emergency preparedness. Notable organizations this funding would contribute to include the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), ICE, the TSA, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Secret Service, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Many Senators have voiced their anger with the behavior of the DHS and CBP and have stated they will not allow the spending package to become law.
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer of New York announced that, “Senate Democrats will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.” He followed up saying the behavior of ICE in Minneapolis and in other parts of the country has been “appalling” and “unacceptable in any American city.”
Senators Catherine Cortex Masto and Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Tim Kaine of Virginia, and Brian Schatz of Hawaii have also shared their disapproval and won’t be supporting the DHS funding within the six-bill minibus.
“I am voting against funding for DHS until and unless more controls are put in place to hold ICE accountable,” Schatz said.
Independent Senator Angus King of Maine worked with both parties last year to negotiate an agreement ending the longest government shutdown in this country’s history. He has stated that he will not push forward the package if the DHS bill is included. King believes the DHS bill should be separated from the minibus to resolve the fight in Congress and avoid a potential government shutdown.
“I hate shutdowns. But I can’t vote for a bill that includes ICE funding under these circumstances. If [the five other] bills pass, 96% of the federal government is funded. Take up DHS by itself, let's have an honest negotiation, put some guardrails on what's going on, some accountability, and that would solve this problem."
The Republican Party holds 53 seats in the Senate, the Democratic Party has 47 seats, and there are two Independents. In order for a bill to be voted on, floor debates need to be finished through motioning cloture. Invoking cloture is the process of ending debates on a bill to allow the Senate to proceed to the final vote. Cloture requires 60 votes in the Senate. Several GOP senators have opposed the package for other reasons and concerns. The Republican Party won’t have all 53 seats voted to pass the package. This makes the Democratic votes especially important to the future of this package.
If the Senate cannot invoke cloture for the package, the bill is effectively stalled and cannot proceed. The deadline for the package to be passed is January 30th. In order for the package to move forward, Senate leadership would need to consider new negotiations. Democrats have proposed removing the DHS bill from the package; this would require the House to vote again. The House of Representatives is currently in recess meaning they’re not available to vote on any changes made to the package. This means the Senate can’t make changes to the package and vote on it to become law before the deadline. Without the package, several agencies will not have funding and run out of legal authority to spend money. This will result in a partial government shutdown. The shutdown would last until both chambers pass a new refined version of the funding bill.
The Collateral Damage
The five other bills withhold funding for highly prioritized aspects in the United States.
The Interior-Environment Appropriations Act provides funding for the Environmental Protection Agency, National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, and other related agencies.
The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act holds funding for the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency, NASA, National Science Foundation, and more.
The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act shares funding for the Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, and Department of Energy.
The Financial Services & General Government Appropriations Act provides funding to the U.S. Treasury, IRS, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Small Business Administration (SBA), and the General Services Administration.
The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act funds agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture, FDA, and organizations prioritized in developing rural communities.
The funding of these five bills makes up an estimated 90% of the total funding from the package.
