People wait in long lines to check through security at LaGuardia Airport on March 25, 2026 in Queens, New York. Travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents have left or are working without pay during the partial government shutdown. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON – U.S. senators showed no movement Wednesday toward an agreement to end a shutdown at the Department of Homeland Security, despite the problems it causes for thousands of federal workers who could miss their next paycheck and travelers wait hours to pass through airport security lines.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-D., said the Democrats’ offer sent this morning was completely unacceptable and that GOP lawmakers didn’t even bother sending back a counteroffer.
“They know better. They are asking for things that have already been rejected,” he said. “So it looks like they’re going around in circles.”
Thune said the chamber will later vote on the DHS funding bill, which does not cover enforcement and removal operations at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency’s arm responsible for deportations and detentions.
“Over the weekend they said they did not want to finance the Energy Regulatory Office. They would finance everything else,” he said. “Therefore, we will give the opportunity to vote for such a decision.”
Thune said Republicans’ decision to defund deportation programs represents a “significant” compromise that shows GOP lawmakers are “coming to the table and trying to reach an agreement.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the offer sent by Democrats represents a “reasonable, good-faith proposal that raises some of the same questions Democrats have been talking about for months.”
Schumer said the Republican proposal sent earlier this week did not include any of the changes to immigration enforcement that Democrats have made talk about since January, when federal officers killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.
“For Republicans to send us a proposal that does not include reforms is also bad faith and will only slow down the process,” he said.
Trump ‘almost unhappy’ with ‘any deal’
President Donald Trump remains a wild card in the negotiations. His support will be needed for any DHS-funded bill to become law, regardless of how long it takes lawmakers to reach consensus.
“Well, I don’t want to comment until I see the contract,” he said Tuesday when asked about ongoing talks with DHS. “But as you know, they’re negotiating a deal. I think they’re almost close. But I think whatever deal they make, I’m not happy with it.”
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., when asked about these comments during a Wednesday morning news conference, appeared skeptical about eliminating some items from the DHS funding bill.
Any legislation to end the shutdown that passes the Senate will have to pass the House before reaching Trump’s desk.
“We have always funded Homeland as a whole department. There are obvious reasons for that. It’s very important. I don’t think we need to separate it,” he said. “And I think that’s what the president is reflecting there. He wants Congress to do its damn job.”
Will Congress leave town without a deal?
It is unclear whether the Senate will still go on a two-week spring break without a bipartisan agreement on DHS funding, which closed on February 14.
Legislation cannot be introduced in this house without the support of at least 60 senators, making the support of each party vital to ending the parliamentary shutdown.
Thune said he hasn’t made a final decision yet, but it seems likely that if no progress is made toward an agreement, he will allow lawmakers to go home for their scheduled recess.
“If we’re not here and Democrats are willing to make a deal, we’ll certainly get everyone to vote on this again,” he said. “But there are no decisions on that yet. So I hope the next few days will be productive.”
Until an agreement is reached, the termination of DHS funding will continue to impact employees and programs run by multiple agencies within the department, including the Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secret Service and the Transportation Security Administration.
ICE and Customs and Border Protection operations have largely continued uninterrupted since Republicans approved tens of billions of dollars additional financing for these agencies in their “big beautiful” law.
“We have a lot of plate rotation.”
Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford said lawmakers must find some solution to fund DHS after weeks of impasse.
“Eventually we have to open them,” he said. “And the frustration is that we literally offered what they asked for three days ago and then all of a sudden we say, ‘Oh no, no, we have something new.’”
Lankford said he doesn’t want senators to go on recess without an agreement on reopening DHS.
North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said lawmakers should remain near the Capitol until they resolve at least some of several outstanding issues.
“We have a lot of plates floating around. I’m afraid if we go out until we know for sure, a few of them will fall on the floor and people will wonder what’s going on,” he said.
Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, the top Democrat on the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, said the Trump administration’s handling of immigration enforcement and deportation has led to DHS funding problems.
“I have a constitutional obligation to only fund a government that obeys the law,” he said. “I would be breaking my pledge to fund ICE without reforms.”
Moreno and Merkley clash
Ohio Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno took the floor this evening to ask for unanimous consent to approve a bill that would fund every element of DHS for two weeks, providing back pay to all employees.
Moreno said that would give senators enough time to reach a bipartisan agreement on a year-long DHS spending bill if they canceled their recess and stayed on the job.
Oregon Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley has proposed that lawmakers instead fund the TSA through the end of September, when the current fiscal year ends.
Moreno then asked Merkley to amend the proposal to fund all agencies within DHS except law enforcement and removal operations for the rest of the fiscal year.
Merkley then said he would agree to fund every agency within DHS except ICE and CBP.
“He continues to ask for funding for Customs and Border Protection without changing their behavior across the country,” Merkley said. “He continues to ask for ICE funding without modifying their actions as they act like the secret police.”
Senators failed to reach an agreement on approving long-term funding for any of the DHS agencies during a nearly hour-long exchange that became tense at several points.
Moreno said the impasse marks a “sad day for the United States Senate.”
Ariana Figueroa contributed to this report.
