A prolonged deadlock among US lawmakers over immigration enforcement has threatened to push the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) toward a partial government shutdown from Saturday, as political tensions rise following two fatal shootings in Minneapolis, AFP reported.
Ahead of the partial shutdown, the top Democrat in the Republican-controlled Senate, Chuck Schumer, said, “For weeks, we’ve been pushing commonsense reforms.” As per reports, the partial shutdown is set to go into effect after midnight on Friday night.
Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt blamed the opposition for the situation. “Democrats are barreling our government toward another shutdown for political and partisan reasons,” she told. Fox News.
The Democrats have been opposing any new funding for DHS until major changes are implemented in the way Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency working to carry out President Donald Trump’s migrant crackdown, is functioning.
They are calling for roaming patrols to be limited, ICE agents to be banned from wearing facemasks during enforcement actions, and for officers to obtain a judicial warrant before entering private property, demands aimed at increasing transparency and legal protections during immigration operations.
Democrats’ opposition to ICE and its heavy-handed tactics was triggered after Renee Good and Alex Pretti were fatally shot in January. The two US citizens were targeted and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis as they protested against the immigration operations.
Rising concerns about ICE
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed similar concerns on Thursday, warning that ICE was “completely and totally out of control.”
“Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, not brutalize or kill them,” he said, adding that violence was occurring “whenever these masked and untrained ICE agents show up.”
Even if all 53 Republican senators vote to fund DHS, Senate rules require support from 60 of the 100 members to advance the budget bill, meaning several opposition Democrats would need to get on board.
In response to the Democrats’ demands, the White House said that it was ready to negotiate, the agency reported.
Will airports be impacted?
If no agreement is reached, thousands of civil servants could be placed on furlough, while thousands more would be required to continue working without pay until a budget deal is finalized.
However, Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be able to maintain its operations using funds already approved by Congress last year.
The primary impact would land on other agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which oversees emergency response to natural disasters.
The Transportation Security Administration, which runs airport safety, released a warning on X (formerly Twitter), stating that a prolonged shutdown could result in longer wait times and canceled flights.
