Senate Democrats followed through on a threat to block a major funding package, and an unexpected group of Republicans broke ranks, sinking the six-bill deal. The dispute centers on a Democratic demand to pull the Department of Homeland Security funding out of the package, and now lawmakers are scrambling for Plan B to avoid at least a partial shutdown. Leadership from both parties is trading blame while negotiating whether to advance five bills and punt DHS funding into a short-term fix.
For days Democratic leaders made clear they would not accept the full six-bill bundle unless the DHS title was separated, insisting immigration and enforcement changes be handled first. That tactic was meant to force a choice: accept the split or be held responsible for a shutdown. Republicans in the Senate pushed back, arguing the broader package was ready to move and should not be held hostage to one department.
Then seven Republican senators voted with Democrats to block the measure, a surprising crack in GOP unity. Sens. Ted Budd, Ron Johnson, Mike Lee, Ashley Moody, Rand Paul, Rick Scott and Tommy Tuberville broke with leadership and joined the Democratic position. Their defection underscored how fragile any coalition is when high-stakes policy fights are tied to must-pass funding.
Senate Democrats insisted they would back the other five bills in the bundle if given the chance, positioning the dispute squarely around DHS. “Democrats are ready to avert a shutdown,” said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. “We have five bills we all agree on. About 95% of the remaining budget. It is ready to go,” she continued. “We can pass those five bills, no problem. All Leader Thune has to do is tee them up for a vote.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune moved to force the issue with a test vote meant to open debate and push the package toward a final tally. He framed the maneuver as a way to see if Democrats were serious about advancing parts of the deal, not just blocking the whole thing. Thune said he hoped talks involving the White House and Senate Democrats would produce “the votes that are necessary to get it passed.”
Thune also made clear that wholesale policy changes to ICE would not be folded into this appropriations vehicle. He told colleagues that the bill is not the place for those sweeping reforms and that negotiations would need to happen elsewhere. “That’s not going to happen in this bill, but there are, I mean, there’s a path to consider some of those things and negotiate that out between Republicans, Democrats, House, Senate, White House,” Thune said. “But that’s not gonna happen in this bill.”
With the six-bill package stalled, Senate Republicans and the White House began exploring fallback plans to avoid a shutdown and limit damage. The bundle included major funding for the Pentagon and other agencies, so the stakes are high if certainty slips. Party leaders on both sides are attempting to thread the needle between policy fights and the practical need to keep government services funded.
One option gaining traction among Republican senators is to strip DHS from the package, advance the remaining five bills, and then pass a short-term continuing resolution just for Homeland Security. That would let most of the government move forward while buying time to negotiate DHS specifics. Talks between Senate Democrats and the White House have been described as ongoing on that very idea.
A White House official told Fox News Digital in a statement, “President Trump has been consistent — he wants the government to remain open, and the Administration has been working with both parties to ensure the American people don’t have to endure another shutdown.” “A shutdown would risk disaster response funding and more vital resources for the American people,” the official said. Those remarks signal the administration’s priority is continuity, even as it cautions against political brinkmanship.
That path, however, runs into procedural and political hurdles, especially with the House out of session until next week. Any change to the Senate package would require approval from the lower chamber, creating a timing crunch. The need for House buy-in complicates what might otherwise be a tidy Senate solution.
Senate Democrats, led by Chuck Schumer, pushed back and pinned the risk of a lapse on Republican scheduling decisions. “Well, let me tell you first, if funding lapses, it’s all because of Leader Thune,” Schumer said. “It’s on his back.” The rhetoric reflects the high political stakes and the willingness of both sides to assign blame if appropriations falter.
House Republicans have already warned they will balk at any deal that looks like a retreat on priorities or a repeat of short-term patches they dislike, making a DHS-only CR a controversial option. Yet pressure is building in some circles, with Schumer and the White House reportedly warming to a temporary extension as negotiations continue. Democrats had argued last week that a short-term fix for DHS would amount to a “slush fund” for the administration, so any move toward a CR would be a notable reversal for them.
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