Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is intensifying pressure on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and the other Senate Democrats as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown enters its sixth week with no end in sight.
House GOP leaders are prepared to vote on two bills on Thursday, aimed at putting Democrats in a difficult position regarding the shutdown.
Johnson is making the House vote on funding DHS for the third time until the end of the fiscal year on September 30. The bill is based on a deal made by both parties earlier this year, but Democrats left in large numbers to protest President Donald Trump’s plan to stop illegal immigration.
The second step is a nonbinding resolution led by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa., that shows support for all of DHS’s agencies.
It comes at a time when the DHS shutdown, which has been going on for 38 days, is causing problems for airline travelers all over the country. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staffing shortages are causing hours-long delays at major airports in Houston, New Orleans, New York City, and other places. Due to the shutdown, many TSA agents are reporting sick.
This Friday, TSA agents are likely to miss their paychecks. This will be the second full pay period they have missed since the shutdown began.
The TSA is one of many agencies that work for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Other examples are the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).
“Anyone waiting for hours just to miss their flights will not soon forget, and Republicans are going to continue reminding Americans that it’s the Democrats putting their safety at risk just to protect criminal illegal aliens,” a House GOP leadership aide told Fox News Digital on Monday.
“The problem for Democrats in their latest shutdown is they are hurting American citizens in an effort to protect criminal illegals and reopen our border, as evidenced by their own words and bills they are pushing to defund Customs and Border Patrol,” the House GOP leadership aide added.
Funding talks for DHS have come to a standstill because Republicans have turned down important requests from Democrats for changes to ICE and CBP, such as requiring judicial warrants for immigration operations and banning agents from wearing face masks.
Trump also messed up the talks by telling Republicans not to accept any offer from Democrats until left-wing lawmakers agree to move forward with a separate election integrity measure called the SAVE America Act.
The Senate requires the support of at least a few Democrats to break a filibuster and advance any DHS funding bill.
The House passed the first DHS funding bill from congressional negotiators twice, and it will probably do so again on Thursday.
Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., is responsible for the third version of the bill.
“This standoff has gone on long enough,” Ciscomani told Fox News Digital on Monday. “The men and women who keep our country safe here at home are a critical part of our national security—they need to get paid, now. These professionals should never be caught in the middle of political games, yet that’s exactly what has happened. It’s shameful.”
The nonbinding resolution honoring DHS is also likely to pass, but it’s unclear how much Democratic support it would get.
“Instead of joining the bipartisan majority in supporting full funding for DHS, including commonsense reforms like body cameras and de-escalation training, Democratic leadership is afraid of the radical ‘Defund ICE’ movement and unwilling to compromise to protect the American people,” Mackenzie told Fox News Digital. “This situation is unacceptable, and it must end immediately.”
The GOP has shunned Democrats’ attempts to push legislation to fund DHS, excluding agencies related to Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Both Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., have argued that ICE’s controversial operations in Minneapolis and other blue cities are reason enough to block any proposal that funds further immigration operations.