WASHINGTON—Democrats on Jan. 29 reached a deal with Republicans to fund the government ahead of a partial shutdown deadline on Jan. 30.
President Donald Trump announced the deal in a post on Truth Social, saying, “I am working hard with Congress to ensure that we are able to fully fund the Government, without delay.”
The resulting deal will temporarily extend funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as lawmakers continue to negotiate reforms to the department’s handling of immigration enforcement.
Trump wrote, “Republicans and Democrats in Congress have come together to get the vast majority of the Government funded until September, while at the same time providing an extension to the Department of Homeland Security (including the very important Coast Guard, which we are expanding and rebuilding like never before).”
The office of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stated that as part of the deal, Senate Democrats would provide the votes to pass five House-passed spending bills that fully fund the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.
Schumer said that Democrats would provide the votes to pass a stopgap spending bill to fund DHS for two weeks to allow additional time for negotiations.
For days, the government has appeared to be on track for a partial shutdown on Jan. 30 as Democrats vowed to oppose funding DHS, the agency that oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the wake of federal agents’ fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
Democrats on Jan. 28 laid out their core asks for supporting the larger package, providing insight into the shape of the upcoming negotiations.
“Our caucus is united, is unified, over three main legislative objectives,” Schumer said during a news conference on Jan. 28, indicating that the three demands would need to be met to win Democratic support for a bill to fund DHS.
First, Schumer said, Democrats want “an end to roving patrols” of ICE agents in U.S. cities. He called for a solution that would require warrants and coordination with local and state law enforcement.
Second, Schumer said, Democrats want “to enforce accountability.”
“Federal agents should be held to the same use-of-force policies that apply to state and local law enforcement, and be held accountable when they violate these rules,” he said.
Finally, Schumer said Democrats want reforms that would require ICE and other immigration agents to wear body cameras, remove masks, and always carry proper state identification while carrying out immigration enforcement activities.
Some Democrats had already told The Epoch Times that they would oppose a stopgap funding bill to keep DHS operating. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) was among them.
When he was asked on Jan. 28 by The Epoch Times whether he would back a stopgap funding bill, Van Hollen said, “No, not another dime to this lawless operation.”
Meanwhile, some Republicans have indicated that they’re open to reforms at DHS, although they oppose shutting down the government over the issue.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) seconded Trump’s calls for “thorough investigation” into the Pretti shooting.
Hawley said his primary concern is preventing a shutdown, which he said would be “terrible for everybody, for [Missouri], for working people.” To that end, he said that he plans to vote for the DHS funding bill.
‘Short Shutdown Situation’ Expected
Though a deal has been reached, Congress won’t be able to finalize it before Monday, meaning that the government will likely enter a partial shutdown over the weekend.
That’s because House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said on Thursday that the earliest the House can vote on the modified deal will be on Monday, which he said will prompt a “short shutdown situation.”
“But the House is going to do its job. We want to get the government funded, as does the president, so respect whatever he was able to negotiate there, and we’ll deal with it,” Johnson said on Thursday at the premiere of the film “Melania” at the Kennedy Center.
After the deal was announced around 6:00 p.m. local time, meetings in the Senate began, with indications that some unknown Republicans are holding out on giving their backing to the bill.
Multiple Republicans—including Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), and others—were seen going in and out of Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s (R-S.D.) office.
Though Republicans leaving the meeting were tight-lipped about what was happening in the meeting or the nature of the disagreement, they were skeptical about a vote on the deal Thursday evening.
