The US Congress has only 10 days to negotiate an agreement to prevent the Department of Homeland Security from facing another shutdown—this time impacting only that specific department. Currently, there is little optimism among parties about reaching a deal.
At the heart of the dispute is one of the most contentious issues in American national politics: reforming federal immigration enforcement, which includes establishing new oversight rules for immigration agencies and imposing sanctions on local jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with federal authorities.
Republicans have explicitly rejected core Democratic demands, such as tightening warrant approval requirements and prohibiting federal officers from wearing masks while on duty. Meanwhile, Democrats have poured cold water on Republican proposals to crack down on so-called "sanctuary cities."
Senate Majority Leader John Thune issued a warning on Tuesday, stating that it is "simply not possible" to reach a deal and deliver it to President Donald Trump by the new February 13 deadline.
"Our negotiation window is extremely short, and I was opposed to setting such a deadline in the first place," Thune said, referring to the two-week transition period for funding the Department of Homeland Security that Democrats insisted upon.
At the same time, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated on Tuesday that Democrats will not accept another short-term temporary funding measure.
These statements suggest that the Department of Homeland Security may face a potentially prolonged shutdown, with the most severe impacts falling on its non-immigration enforcement functions, including the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Coast Guard. This is because agencies at the center of Democratic opposition, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol, have already received funding from the "big and beautiful" domestic policy bill enacted by Republicans in July.
In fact, last month, Democratic senators were prepared to compromise and accept a funding bill that would maintain the Department of Homeland Security's annual budget at current levels—a bill that had previously garnered support from only seven Democratic representatives in the House. However, this plan collapsed entirely on January 24 when Department of Homeland Security officers shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti on the streets of Minneapolis. The incident prompted bipartisan calls for new, strict limitations on the Trump administration's immigration enforcement actions.
Thune and other Republicans have already warned that even if the February 13 deadline passes, Congress will need to secure more time for negotiations. Several senators revealed that because the House has been preoccupied with advancing a larger omnibus spending bill—which was finally passed on Tuesday—negotiations on immigration enforcement reform have been largely stalled.
So far, Republicans and Democrats have not even agreed on who should lead the negotiations. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has placed the responsibility for negotiations on Thune, while Thune and other Republicans believe that any viable agreement must be negotiated under the leadership of the White House, with congressional Republicans fully "participating in the process."
A prolonged shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security would quickly put both parties in a difficult position. Although the immigration enforcement work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection can largely continue unaffected, the Coast Guard and the Transportation Security Administration would lose funding—potentially causing chaos at airports nationwide and creating a crisis for paying the entire Coast Guard. The US Secret Service and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency would also be affected.
Given that Congress has historically struggled to reach consensus on any immigration-related issues, many lawmakers are skeptical that this round of negotiations will yield an agreement.
Schumer revealed that Democrats have prepared a list of core demands for the negotiations and expect to formally submit a proposal "very soon."
While Republicans have expressed willingness to discuss some Democratic proposals, such as equipping officers with body cameras and providing de-escalation training, they generally oppose the Democratic demand that immigration officers must obtain judicial warrants—rather than administrative warrants—before making arrests. Many Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, also oppose requiring federal officers to remove their masks, arguing that it could jeopardize officer safety.
"I can tell you unequivocally that we will not agree to adding a completely new judicial warrant approval process," Johnson said on Tuesday. "This requirement is not workable; it cannot be implemented, should not be implemented, and is entirely unnecessary."
At the same time, Republicans insist that any agreement adding new restrictions on immigration enforcement agencies must include provisions to address "sanctuary cities" that do not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. Some Republicans are also considering adding stricter immigration-related clauses to the bill, including increasing penalties for illegal border crossing and illegal re-entry.
Some Senate Democrats who voted for the omnibus spending bill last week, including Senator Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, have explicitly warned Republicans not to expect their support for another temporary funding measure.
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