Senate Passes Bill Partially Funding DHS

The Senate passed a bill to partially fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), ending a 42-day stalemate.

The Bill: The bill was passed around 2 a.m. and is expected to reach the House for a vote on Friday before it can be signed into law by President Donald Trump. The bill will fund key agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Coast Guard, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Transportation Security Agency (TSA). It will not provide funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

Trump's Order: The funding bill passed the Senate just hours after Trump said he would sign an executive order instructing DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to pay TSA workers immediately. Trump said on Truth Social, "because the Democrats have recklessly created a true National Crisis, I am using my authorities under the Law to protect our Great Country, as I always will do! I will not allow the Radical Left Democrats to hold our Country hostage any longer."

When Travel Gets Political: Many TSA workers have been calling out, and nearly 500 have quit their jobs as the DHS shutdown waged on and they just endured a second week with no paycheck. Trump has sent ICE agents to the airports to help with the long wait times experienced by travelers, and also mentioned the possibility of activating the National Guard to help.

Behind The Chaos: The prolonged fight over government funding is behind the chaos at the airports. After the killings of US citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good by immigration agents, Senate Democrats withdrew support for the standard DHS funding bill. Democrats wanted to add concessions to the bill for body camera mandates, a ban on face masks, and a requirement for procuring a warrant to enter private residences. Many Republicans, and Trump, were pushing for the funding to be passed alongside of the Save America Act. The infighting and disagreements caused the 42-day stalemate.

How The Media Covered It: Some outlets on the left, like The Washington Post (Lean Left bias) highlighted statements from Democrats like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) saying "This could've been accomplished weeks ago if Republicans hadn't stood in the way." Some outlets on the right, conversely, such as ZeroHedge (Lean Right), highlighted statements from Republicans like Senate Majority Leader John Thune (SD) saying "President Trump should never have had to step in to rescue TSA workers and U.S. air travel. We are here because, thanks to Democrats' determined refusal to reach an agreement, there will be no Homeland Security funding bill this year." ZeroHedge also said Democrat objections to the funding bill was "mostly because the president has used those federal agencies to deport illegal aliens, the very ones that Democrats let in through disastrous open borders to build a new voting bloc in their aspirations of a one-party rule nation."   

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