Republicans on Wednesday balked at a Democratic counteroffer to reopen the Department of Homeland Security, as lawmakers and the White House scramble to strike a deal before a scheduled two-week recess begins on Friday ahead of a busy U.S. travel week for spring breaks and the Easter holiday.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters on Wednesday there was “no point” in Republicans issuing another response to Democrats’ counter and said the Senate would vote later that day on the GOP proposal unveiled earlier this week.
“It’s not even close to being real,” Thune said of the counteroffer. “They know better. They’re asking for things that have already been turned down. So it just seems like they’re going in circles, spinning, spinning.”
The back-and-forth between Hill Republicans and Democrats means a potential deal before the weekend is far from certain. Optimism at the start of the week began to evaporate by Wednesday, with airport security lines long and lawmakers seemingly at an impasse.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday morning from the Senate floor that Democrats were looking for a solution. He called a recent offer from Republicans “bad faith” and announced a counter.
“Our offer is a reasonable, good faith proposal that contains some of the very same asks Democrats have been talking about now for months,” Schumer said.
Schumer did not list out the specific points of his proposal, but Democrats have for months sought changes to the immigration enforcement practices of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Those changes include a requirement for judicial warrants for federal agents to enter private property and banning the use of masks.
“We have now given Republicans our response, and it’s a serious offer. And time is of the essence I’d say to my Republican colleagues,” Schumer said. “The Easter holiday is coming, families are going on spring break. TSA lines are literally stretching out the door of airports.”
The counter comes after Senate Republicans and the White House unveiled a proposal earlier this week to fund much of the agency while withholding money for Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s enforcement and removal operations.
Democrats bristled at the proposal because it did not include any of the ICE changes they have demanded. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, a moderate who caucuses with Democrats and who has voted with Republicans on government funding, said he was still a “no” on Wednesday. King called the GOP proposal “illusory,” because it would still fund ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations division, which he said is engaged in enforcement and removal operations.
Republicans, in response, said Democrats have moved the goal posts.
Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said Democrats should “quit moving around” on DHS funding. And Thune from the Senate floor on Wednesday touted the existing GOP proposal, which in addition to the first round of DHS funding would include a Republican-led attempt at a second legislative package to make up ICE funds and pass the SAVE America Act, the Trump-based voter-ID.
“Democrats have repeatedly said that they want to pay TSA, Coast Guard, FEMA and employees who defend America from cyber attacks,” Thune said. “This bill would do it. I hope Democrats will work with us to finalize an agreement and reopen the Department of Homeland Security this week.”
DHS has been shut down since February. Transportation Security Administration agents have missed pay checks and are skipping work, causing massive lines at airports throughout the country. Trump this week began deploying ICE agents to airports to assist TSA agents.
Democrats refused to fund the agency after federal agents killed to U.S. citizens during an immigration surge in Minneapolis in January. They have repeatedly forced votes to fund all of DHS except for ICE, which Republicans have opposed.
Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said frustration was building on Wednesday.
“We literally offered what they asked for three days ago and then suddenly it’s like, oh no, now we got new stuff. This has been the story of the entire time,” Lankford said. “This has been the constant journey — one more thing, one more thing, one more thing.”
Asked if he thought the Senate would leave for recess, Lankford said: “No.”
— Emily Wilkins contributed to this story.
