House to Vote on Government Reopening Bill
The House is set to vote on a bill aimed at reopening government agencies after a shutdown that started early Saturday morning. Lawmakers have only a few days left to negotiate border security issues concerning ICE. Without a resolution, the agency responsible for these matters could face another shutdown.
Last week, Congress narrowly avoided a crisis when the Senate agreed on a funding deal to keep essential federal agencies operational, thus sidestepping the turmoil of a 43-day government shutdown.
On Friday night, the Senate approved a spending bill with a vote of 71-29 to finance much of the government.
However, increasing tensions around Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have prompted Congressional Democrats, alongside some Republicans, to demand alterations. As a result, the deal has separated Homeland Security programs, offering only two weeks of funding at 2025 levels.
This negotiation, which is poised to attract national attention, comes as ICE agents intensify actions against illegal immigration amidst escalating protests.
“This is going to lead to a battle over DHS and ICE,” remarked a Congressional official.
Even with the agreement in place, the government officially shut down at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. Lawmakers were unable to process the latest bill text as the House was in recess, but the impact was somewhat softened over the weekend, as many non-essential federal employees were off anyway.
Senate Democrats now find themselves in a stronger position, especially after President Trump appointed Border Patrol agent Tom Homan to Minneapolis, indicating that he will “de-escalate tensions a little bit.” The spending bill requires 60 votes for passage, meaning Senate Republicans will need seven Democrats to join them.
The weekend shutdown means temporary furloughs for employees in various departments, including Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, Housing, Urban Development, and DHS, though most were not scheduled to work over the weekend.
Other government agencies that have already received funding will continue their operations as usual.
