Senate Republicans have approved a budget resolution to fund Donald Trump's crackdown on undocumented immigrants, setting the stage for legislation that could allocate up to $140bn to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The measure passed by 50-48 in the early hours of Thursday, with all Democrats opposed, along with Republicans Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky.
The resolution is a key step in the budget reconciliation process, which Republicans are using to bypass a Democratic filibuster. The two agencies have been without funding since mid-February, when the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown began, following the deaths of two US citizens during an immigration operation in Minneapolis in January.
Senate majority leader John Thune said: “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 resolution now moves to the House of Representatives, where committees will draft the legislation formally unlocking the funding.
House speaker Mike Johnson has indicated that, if progress is made on the reconciliation bill, he will hold a vote on a separate measure to fund the rest of DHS operations, excluding 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,” he said on Tuesday.
Democratic efforts to secure reforms to immigration operations, including a ban on federal agents wearing masks and stopping people without warrants, broke down after weeks of talks. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer criticised the plan, saying: “Tonight, Senate Republicans showed the American people where they stand: not for families struggling with the high costs of childcare, groceries and gasoline, electricity, but for pumping $140bn towards rogue agencies.”
During the vote-a-rama, Democrats proposed amendments on affordability issues such as grocery prices and healthcare costs. Susan Collins of Maine and Dan Sullivan of Alaska, both seen as vulnerable incumbents, supported these amendments, but they failed to advance.
