The Senate is readying to pass a trio of bills to fund the government, and for now, neither side wants to engage in another government shutdown. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Among the annual spending bills is the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill, which has become a political lightning rod in the wake of Renee Nicole Good’s death in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-related shooting.
Some Senate Democrats want to use it to leverage more oversight at DHS, specifically for ICE and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).
That sticky wicket could cause the bill to never actually come to the floor — it was nixed from a recently released spending package from the House earlier this week. That means it could land in a short-term funding extension, known as a continuing resolution (CR).
SENATE ADVANCES $174B PACKAGE AS MINNESOTA ICE SHOOTING FUELS DHS FUNDING FIGHT
President Donald Trump points as he boards Air Force One for a trip to Detroit, Jan. 13, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. (Evan Vucci/AP)
"As I said, that's one of the major issues that the appropriators are confronting right now before the bill comes up," Schumer said.
There is also resistance to a CR among some Democrats, who argue that an extension would only benefit President Donald Trump, given that it would keep funding levels and priorities the same from the previous fiscal year without their thumbprints on updated appropriations.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said on the Senate floor that a short-term funding extension was effectively a "slush fund" for Trump and Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought to use and abuse, but lauded the efforts from both sides of the aisle to push forward with funding bills.
That’s because the bipartisan legislation in the upper chamber includes Democratic funding priorities, a key negotiating point after the administration slashed congressionally approved funding last year.
"That is why, right now, it is so important that we end that slush fund authority and reassert our power as lawmakers by passing these full-year spending bills that specify exactly how funds are to be spent just as we had always done until last year," Murray said.
But, unlike in September, it appears that neither side is ready to careen the government into a shutdown once more.
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Still, time is running out, and the Senate is set to leave Washington, D.C., for a weeklong recess by the end of this week while the House processes another smaller funding package. That two-bill effort still won’t be enough to keep the lights on, however.
"I don't think there's going to be [a shutdown]," Thune said, "And I say this because I think on both sides, I've said this before, not new information. I think government shutdowns are stupid. I don't think anybody wins. And, I hope the Democrats share that view. And if they do, right now, at least the appropriations process is moving forward."
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dhs-funding-fight-drives-senate-scramble-avoid-government-shutdown