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The deadlock over funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains unresolved as lawmakers moved through Friday without addressing the reduced paychecks for agency workers, marking the second week of the DHS shutdown.
For a month, legislators have been at a standstill over the budget for DHS for the fiscal year 2026. Negotiations between the White House and Democratic leaders have made little headway, even as the possibility of employees missing their paydays becomes more real.
Typically, ensuring federal employees receive their paychecks is a significant motivator to resolve government shutdowns. With the first missed payday already past, and most DHS staff continuing to work despite the funding gap, there’s concern that no immediate solution is in sight to resolve the deadlock.
Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) expressed his frustration, saying, “How can you get a win on both sides? I just haven’t figured that out yet.”
The Democrats presented their latest proposal to Republicans on February 16. However, it went unanswered for almost two weeks before the White House issued a formal response late on Thursday night.
“[On Thursday], the White House made another serious counter offer,” a White House official said. “Democrats need to make a move to end the shutdown before more Americans are harmed by a lack of funding for critical services like disaster relief.”
Spokespeople for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in a statement that they are “reviewing [the offer] closely.”
“Democrats remain committed to keep fighting for real reforms to rein in ICE and stop the violence,” they said in a statement.
Both sides have aired similar complaints throughout the discussions: that the opposite party is not negotiating in good faith and has not made meaningful concessions.
Republicans have argued that Democrats, who are feeling the political wind at their backs, are uninterested in a deal and would rather have immigration enforcement as a midterms issue than solve the problem. They’ve also dismissed the Feb. 16 counterproposal an near- carbon copy of Democrats’ opening list of demands.
“We’ve got to have a partner that actually wants to make a deal. It seems like the Democrats have concluded that this is may be good politics for them,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told reporters on Thursday. “It’s not for the people whose lives are affected on a daily basis, so we’ll keep pressing to try and get folks to the table.”
Thune added that the two sides are continuing to trade paper in the hopes of “finding a sweet spot.”
Democrats, meanwhile, have held steady on their demands, which were spurred by the immigration crackdown in Minneapolis that culminated with immigration agents fatally shooting two U.S. citizens. They insist they won’t send any more money to DHS unless it is accompanied by reforms to how the administration carries out immigration enforcement.
Headlining those demands are tightening warrant requirements for immigration arrests, banning immigration agents from covering their faces while carrying out operations, and ending roving patrols in communities.
Buoying the Democratic argument are polls that largely show that President Trump is underwater on the issue. According to a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll, 58 percent of respondents said they disapprove of Trump’s handling of immigration — a figure that’s only increased during his time in office.
In addition, respondents said that they oppose the tactics Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses by a 2-1 margin (62 percent to 31 percent).
Schumer told reporters last week that discussions were stagnant.
“So far, we’ve heard crickets from them. Nothing. They’re not negotiating,” Schumer said before the White House sent its latest proposal. “They’re just trying to pass paper back and forth with no new changes.”
Despite the political state-of-play, Republicans maintain that they have little reason to give in at this point, due largely to the $75 billion passed in the “big, beautiful bill” last year that keeps border operations going for the foreseeable future and covers ICE.
That leaves the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Secret Service and the Coast Guard hung out to dry in the interim, forcing them to work without pay.
Lawmakers are most acutely concerned about the impact on TSA, worried about the possibility of employees refusing to come to work if they don’t receive paychecks.
“There’s certainly potential for that,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said about the possibility of the shutdown lasting well into the future. “What I expect to happen is … regrettably, for airline flights to be impacted.”
“I don’t know what the response will be of TSA, but TSA folks are good people too and you can’t ask somebody to work indefinitely without being paid,” Kennedy continued. “It’s just going to have an impact on performance. It’s inevitable.”
Travel issues cropped up in recent days after DHS announced last weekend plans to suspend the Global Entry and TSA PreCheck programs. The decision was reversed for Precheck, but Global Entry remains shuttered for the time being.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem also indicated on Wednesday that PreCheck could still be shut down if the impasse continues — with lawmakers expecting the administration to potentially pull more levers in the coming days and weeks to make the shutdown more painful.
“They’re going to eventually run out of money for those important agencies, so I think they’re being responsible,” said Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.). “But eventually, it’s going to start affecting passengers.”
Julia Manchester contributed.