After a record 47-day funding lapse, House and Senate Republican leadership have resurrected a stalled plan to reopen the Department of Homeland Security. Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced the revived strategy in a joint statement on Wednesday, signaling a breakthrough in a standoff that has strained their alliance and left key agencies in limbo.
The agreement outlines a two-track approach to end the shutdown. Under the plan, the House will take up a Senate-passed measure to fund most of the DHS through the end of September. However, this initial measure excludes Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol. Those agencies would instead be funded for three years through a separate party-line budget reconciliation bill, a maneuver that does not require Democratic support.
“In following this two-track approach, the Republican Congress will fully reopen the Department, create sure all federal workers are paid, and specifically fund immigration enforcement and border security for the next three years so that those law-enforcement activities can continue uninhibited,” Thune and Johnson wrote.
A Reversal on Capitol Hill
The deal marks a sharp pivot from just a week ago, when House Republicans dismissed an identical plan. At that time, Johnson called the agreement a “joke” and President Trump declined to publicly endorse it, resisting any package that did not include his push to overhaul federal elections known as the Save America Act.
“I believe any deal they make, I’m pretty much not happy with it,” Trump told reporters last week.
By Wednesday, however, the President seemed to bless the revived plan. Writing on social media, Trump said he wants a party-line bill to fund immigration enforcement on his desk by June 1. “We are going to work as fast, and as focused, as possible to replenish funding for our Border and ICE Agents, and the Radical Left Democrats won’t be able to stop us,” Trump wrote.
The shift comes after weeks of friction between the chambers. Search results and reporting indicate the shutdown has stress-tested the relationship between Thune and Johnson, who have maintained frequent communication despite the House dramatically rejecting a Senate-brokered deal on Friday. Some outlets described the joint statement as Johnson effectively surrendering in the standoff to find a path forward.
Opposition From Both Flanks
While leadership celebrates the breakthrough, the agreement faces resistance from both parties. Democrats welcomed the move to reopen most of DHS but reiterated their pledge not to fund ICE without reforms. This stance hardens after immigration enforcement agents killed two U.S. Citizens in Minneapolis. Democrats are pressing for policy demands such as a ban on masks for immigration enforcement officers and requiring warrants issued by a judge to enter homes, none of which are included in the current deal.
“For days, Republican divisions derailed a bipartisan agreement, making American families pay the price for their dysfunction,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote in a statement Wednesday. “Throughout this fight, Senate Democrats never wavered.”
Conservative hard-liners in the House are also poised to object. Rep. Scott Perry, a member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, wrote on X that caving to Democrats and not paying CBP and ICE is agreeing to defund law enforcement. “If that’s vote, I’m a NO,” Perry said.
Despite the shutdown, ICE operations have been minimally impacted. Republican lawmakers approved $75 billion for ICE through another party-line budget reconciliation bill last year, providing a financial buffer during the lapse.
What happens next for the DHS funding bill?
Congress is currently on a two-week recess, but the Senate and House could move to fund all of DHS except ICE and CBP as early as Thursday. Leadership may use a procedure known as unanimous consent, which allows the chambers to circumvent formal voting as long as no member objects. If a member objects, voting could be delayed until all members return from recess.
Why was the DHS shutdown triggered?
The funding lapse stems from a dispute over DHS reform following the death of two protesters at the hands of immigration officers in Minneapolis. Democrats have refused to approve funding without new oversight policies, while Republicans have sought to maintain enforcement capabilities without additional restrictions.
How does this affect federal workers?
The joint statement promises that following the two-track approach will ensure all federal workers are paid. The immediate Senate-passed measure funds most of the department through September, while the subsequent reconciliation bill aims to secure three years of funding for border security activities.
As leadership races to secure unanimous consent before the recess deepens, the coming days will reveal whether the GOP can hold its conference together long enough to end the record-long shutdown.
