Democrats Vow to Oppose Funding for Homeland Security Amid Crisis

The prospect of a partial U.S. government shutdown increases as Democratic senators vow to reject a funding package for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Minnesota resident Alex Pretti by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent.

The Senate is expected to vote on a large House-approved $1.2 trillion funding bill for DHS and other government agencies before Jan. 30. Following the second fatal shooting in Minneapolis, a growing number of Democrats have pledged to oppose it if funding for DHS is still attached to the package.

After the shooting, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer described the events in Minnesota as “appalling” and asserted that Democrats “will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.”

“Democrats sought common sense reforms in the Department of Homeland Security spending bill, but because of Republicans’ refusal to stand up to President Trump, the DHS bill is woefully inadequate to rein in the abuses of ICE,” said Schumer. “I will vote no.”

Other federal officials have additionally commented on their stance.

“I can’t vote for a bill that includes ICE funding under these circumstances,” Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine, additionally shared on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

“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. We don’t have to have a shutdown,” Sen. King added.

Following the passage of the bill, the House of Representatives took a pre-scheduled recess, but if the Senate makes any changes before the deadline, the House would need to return to approve the adjustments. It is not clear whether the Republican-led House can or has the jurisdiction to return and approve it.

Six of the 12 annual spending bills for the current budget year have been signed into law by President Donald Trump, with six more requiring the Senate to act, according to The Associated Press. If the Senate fails to decide by the deadline, funding for agencies covered by the bills will end.