Warnings About DHS Amid Ongoing Shutdown
On Thursday, Russell Vought, who leads the White House Office of Management and Budget, expressed serious concerns to senators about the Department of Homeland Security, stating that it’s “collapsing” due to the ongoing partial government shutdown, which seems to have no end in sight.
During a Senate Budget Committee hearing, Vought elaborated that the department is facing significant difficulties in keeping its workforce intact as a funding crisis has persisted for over two months, beginning on February 14.
“Right now, it seems like the Department of Homeland Security is in a state of collapse,” Vought stated. “We need some kind of temporary solution to cover salaries so that employees don’t leave and pursue other job opportunities,” he added during his testimony.
He also warned that if the shutdown continues, it’s likely that even more DHS employees will leave. “Some of the issues we’ve seen lately since Secretary Marin took over are quite troubling,” Vought continued. “We urgently need a stable funding mechanism for the Department of Homeland Security.”
In response to the situation, President Trump had issued an emergency order on April 3, aiming to provide compensation for all DHS employees affected by the shutdown, a move sparked by the mass resignation of TSA personnel who had been working without pay, causing long delays at airports nationwide.
So far, more than 35,000 DHS staff members have started receiving their paychecks under Trump’s order. However, Vought noted that these emergency actions are merely stopgap measures to keep the situation from escalating into a “full-on strike.”
Earlier this month, Republican leaders in Congress announced they had struck a deal to fund all areas of DHS, excluding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Protection. Senate Republicans plan to address funding for ICE and Border Patrol separately, without needing Democratic support.
Yet, as of now, the House has yet to set a date for a vote on the proposed bill. DHS did not provide a comment when contacted for further information.
