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Senate Republicans advance $140bn plan to fund Trump immigration crackdown amid DHS shutdown
TL;DR
Senate Republicans approved a $140 billion plan to fund Trump's immigration crackdown and end the DHS shutdown. The budget resolution passed 50-48, setting the stage for Congress to allocate funds to ICE and CBP.
Key points
- Senate Republicans approved a $140 billion immigration funding plan
- The budget resolution passed by a 50-48 vote
- Funding targets ICE and CBP amid ongoing DHS shutdown
Mentioned in this story
Donald TrumpImmigration and Customs EnforcementCustoms and Border ProtectionDepartment of Homeland SecurityJohn ThuneLisa MurkowskiRand Paul
Senate Republicans on Thursday approved a plan to fund Donald Trump’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants for the remainder of his term and pave the way for an end to the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The budget resolution adopted along a near party line vote in the early morning hours sets the stage for Congress to craft legislation allocating as much as $140b to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), two agencies at the forefront of Trump’s mass deportation agenda that have been without funding since mid-February, when the DHS shutdown began.
The budget resolution passed by a 50-48 vote, with all Democrats in opposition along with Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky. Its advancement is an important step in the budget reconciliation process, which Republicans are using to skirt a filibuster by Democrats who have refused to vote for funding ICE or CBP after federal agents killed two US citizens in January during an intensive immigration operation in Minneapolis.
“We have a multi-step process ahead of us, but at the end Republicans will have helped ensure that America’s borders are secure and prevented Democrats from defunding these important agencies,” the Republican Senate majority leader, John Thune, said.
The resolution must now be adopted in the House of Representatives, before the chambers’ committees on judiciary and homeland security can get to work on writing the legislation that will formally unlock the funding for the two agencies.
Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker of the House, has said that if progress is made on the reconciliation bill, he will hold a vote on a separate measure, which the Senate approved last month with bipartisan support, to allocate funding for the rest of DHS’s operations exclusive of ICE and CBP.
“Sequencing is important. We have to make sure we don’t isolate and make an orphan out of key agencies of the department,” Johnson said at a press conference Tuesday.
Following the killings in Minneapolis, Democrats spent weeks seeking a deal with the Trump administration on reforms to immigration operations, including a ban on federal agents wearing masks and stopping people without warrants. Those talks broke down, leading Republicans to resort to funding ICE and CBP unilaterally.
Q&A
What is the budget plan approved by Senate Republicans for immigration enforcement?
The budget plan allocates up to $140 billion to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for Trump's immigration policies.
What was the outcome of the Senate vote on the DHS funding plan?
The Senate approved the budget resolution by a 50-48 vote, with all Democrats opposing it and two Republicans voting against.
What are the next steps after the Senate's approval of the immigration funding plan?
The resolution must be adopted by the House of Representatives before committees can begin drafting legislation to unlock the funding for ICE and CBP.
