The Senate is likely to take the first step to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown Thursday morning.
Senate Republicans plan to try to pass virtually the same bill the chamber approved last week before it hit a wall in the House, according to a source familiar with the situation.
That bill funds most of DHS except immigration enforcement, which GOP leaders announced would be part of a party-line bill. Democrats are already spinning the outcome as a win.
âWe were united, held the line, and refused to let Republican chaos win,â Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
The White House, meanwhile, is seeking to assuage Republicans theyâre the winners in this scenario: An OMB memo sent to the Hill and shared first with Semafor argues that the administration can fund ICE and CBP through last yearâs party-line bill in the meantime, and that funding immigration enforcement through reconciliation wonât limit the administrationâs ability to carry out its immigration agenda.
If the Senate clears the bill on Thursday, the House still has to pass it before it reaches President Donald Trumpâs desk. Passing the bill by unanimous consent in the lower chamber will be harder, and itâs not clear when the House will return.