Senate to take test vote to end 27-day DHS shutdown

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News on Thursday that it “is irresponsible” of Democrats to block the funding of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) when the U.S. is “under serious threat.”

When Fox News Chief Congressional Correspondent Chad Pergram asked Graham about “the idea that the Democrats keep proposing half measures” on DHS funding, Graham responded that Congress needs to fund all of DHS.

“We're not going to let the Democratic Party defund Ice and defund the border patrol at a time we're under serious threat,” Graham said.

Pergram noted that ICE is funded through 2029.

But Graham continued: “We're not going to let them do this. This is irresponsible. The entire department needs to be funded.”

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Wednesday that Democrats won’t fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) until Republicans agree to pass “some very basic reforms to “rein in” the “rogue agencies.”

Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, made the remarks from the Senate floor, blaming the funding lapse that has TSA employees working without pay on Republicans.

“Right now, TSA agents are going without pay because Republicans and the White House have decided they would rather shut down all of DHS than pass some very basic reforms to rein in ICE and Border Patrol,” Murray said.

The senator said she and her colleagues would hold out on funding the immigration agencies until changes were made.

“Democrats are not going to write a blank check for rogue agencies that are trampling on the rights of Americans,” Murray said. “Nor are we going to accept the premise that the only way to fund TSA or disaster relief is by giving money to ICE. That’s absurd.”

Murray said the “simple truth” of the matter was all of DHS could be funded if “Republicans agreed to simple reforms,” and “if Republicans stopped blocking the bill I just offered, TSA could be funded today.”

Murray had proposed a bill that would fund DHS — and pay TSA officers — though would exclude ICE and CBP.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sparred on the Senate floor Thursday morning over funding for the Department of Homeland Security ahead of a test vote.

Schumer said Democrats were ready to fund TSA, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, FEMA, the Coast Guard “and most of DHS operations,” though he accused Republicans of blocking it due to disagreements over immigration.

“We know very simply that Democrats just want ICE to behave like any police department in America and use warrants and not wear masks,” Schumer said. “But we don't have to tie that disagreement up and use people at the airports and American citizens as hostages and say, ‘We're not going to fund FEMA.’”

Thune responded: “So I assume the Democrat leader is aware of the fact that we have tried repeatedly to fund everything temporarily to allow the negotiations over the ICE budget to continue.”

 “I'm well aware, but that hasn't worked. What can work?” Schumer said.

“And the reason is because the Democrats have blocked it,” Thune interjected.

Schumer said Democrats will be ready today to fund TSA with no other preconditions, while claiming Thune and Republicans would only fund TSA if ICE and CBP were also funded.

Thune said that once all DHS agencies “that are essential not only to national security and homeland security,” disaster response and moving people through airports are funded, discussions could continue on issues regarding immigration.

The exchange ended without an agreement between the two leaders.

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., accused Senate Democrats of “playing politics” as the Department of Homeland Security shutdown dragged on for its 27th day Thursday, further claiming her colleagues on the left “actually don’t care” about the people they serve.

Britt made the comments during her appearance on “America’s Newsroom” on Thursday morning, lamenting that many DHS workers have gone without pay during the shutdown.

“Democrats are more interested in political theater and gamesmanship than they are about the citizens they serve,” she said.

When asked about the test vote to fund DHS later this afternoon, Britt said Democrats have so far refused to come to the table to talk.

“If Democrats actually cared about reforms, do you know what they would do? They would vote yes to get on that bill, they would bring amendments and we would have an open and honest debate in front of the American people,” Britt said.

She added: “I encourage our Democratic colleagues to come to the table and put people over politics and stop playing theater right there on the Senate floor.”

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., is hammering Democrats over the partial government shutdown as its effects begin to hit millions of travelers at airports across the country.

"This is expected to be one of the busiest spring travel seasons on record. Over 171 million travelers are estimated to fly in the coming weeks, and they expect the agencies responsible for keeping them safe to be fully operational," Scalise told Fox News Digital.

"The longer Democrats hold the Department of Homeland Security hostage, the longer they’re forcing [Transportation Security Administration (TSA)] agents to work without pay and the worse the pain will be that Democrats inflict on regular Americans."

It comes as TSA agents, whose agency operates under DHS, are set to miss their first full paychecks next week. And with Democrats continuing to withhold the department's funding in protest of President Donald Trump's handling of illegal immigration, the standoff still has no clear end in sight.

Scalise's own hometown travel hub, the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, is facing hours-long delays due to the ongoing shutdown.

The DHS funding lapse has prompted a spike in callouts from Transportation Security Officers, as many TSA employees continue to work with pay for the third time since October.

Callouts — or unscheduled absences — have risen to an average of 6% during the shutdown, a TSA official confirmed to Fox News Digital.

Deondre White, a Transportation Security officer (TSO) at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in D.C., told Fox News Digital that thanks to the financial support of his family, he's been able "to show up" for his work.

"I'm thankful for my family to be able to come to work and be able to provide gas [to travel to work] because the gas prices have been rising," he said. "However, there are a lot of officers here who do not have those resources or family commitments from others [to help them out]."

Meanwhile, a TSA official told Fox News Digital that over 300 airport security officers have left TSA since the start of the DHS shutdown.

Reporting by Fox News Digital’s Ashley J. DiMella.

The Senate Homeland Security committee has scheduled the confirmation hearing of President Donald Trump’s nominee for DHS secretary, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., for Wednesday, March 18.

The hearing is set to begin at 9:30 a.m. E.T.

Mullin will sit for his hearing as the department he is set to take over likely remains unfunded.

Senators will take another test vote on Thursday to end the nearly five-week shutdown at the Department of Homeland Security.

The vote needs 60 yeas to move forward — but the vote will likely fail and propel the funding lapse well into next week.

Republicans hold 53 Senate seats to the Democrats' 47 seats, which includes two independents who caucus with Democrats.

While Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., is expected to vote with Republicans to end the shutdown, his Democrat colleagues are still holding out for legislative changes to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The Democrats’ latest tactic has been to push bills funding everything at DHS except ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). But Republicans have objected.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the top Democrat on Appropriations, for the second time has tried to pass a bill funding the rest of DHS — and paying TSA officers — while excluding CBP and ICE.

With the stage set for another likely stalemate, there appears to be no end in sight to the shutdown.

Reporting by Fox News Chief Congressional Correspondent Chad Pergram.

While the lapse in funding at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues, officials have announced that the Global Entry program has resumed.

A DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement the program was "reactivated" on Wednesday at 5 a.m. ET, "as DHS continually evaluates measures it can take amidst the Democrats' continued shutdown of the department.

"We are working hard to alleviate the disruptions to travelers caused by the Democrats' shutdown," the statement continued.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) halted Global Entry at airports last month during the start of the partial government shutdown. It diverted agents to help process travelers instead.

Global Entry expedites the U.S. customs ‌and immigration clearance process for pre-approved, low-risk travelers entering the United States.

Travelers must apply for the program and pay a fee of $120 that lasts five years.

TSA PreCheck remains operational and open at most U.S. airports — although lanes are being evaluated on a case-by-case basis due to staffing constraints.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News Digital's Ashley J. DiMella.

As the lapse in funding at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues, many TSA agents have been forced to accept only partial paychecks for their work — and if the shutdown persists, that partial pay will dry up. 

Many are already receiving no pay at all. 

Deondre White, a Transportation Security officer (TSO) at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in D.C., is in the latter category — and told Fox News Digital that morale among officers "has not been the best."

"We are trying to do our job," White said Tuesday in an interview. "It's very crucial to the TSA mission, but, of course, expenses have been our number-one concern."

He has not received a paycheck since the furlough, he said — and is unsure if and when that will change. 

Over 300 airport security officers have left TSA since the start of the DHS shutdown, with callouts — or unscheduled absences — rising to an average of 6% during the shutdown, a TSA official confirmed to Fox News Digital.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News Digital's Ashley J. DiMella.

The Senate floor erupted Wednesday as Republicans and Democrats sparred over funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with one point becoming clear: neither side was close to reaching a deal.

While senators met behind closed doors just steps from the chamber, party leaders accused each other of refusing to negotiate over reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the key sticking point in the standoff.

"You can cry about it. You can whine about it. You lost an election over it," Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., said. "The White House has dealt with you in good faith. You want to prolong this until you get another incident, while your activists are on the street confronting ICE agents in sanctuary jurisdictions, hoping they get some viral moment."

So far, Senate Republicans have delegated final say over any agreement to the White House, though the back and forth between both sides has slowed to a grinding halt.

Republicans want DHS reopened in the short term, while negotiations over reforms to ICE continue. Democrats, meanwhile, have offered a funding proposal that would carve out immigration enforcement but reopen other key functions, including the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

At the center of the dispute is whether either side will agree to formal negotiations. Republicans say Democrats are ignoring their offers to meet, while Democrats contend they have not received an invitation.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News Digital's Alex Miller.