GOP Races to Avert Shutdown Over ICE Furor

Republicans are racing against the clock to keep parts of the federal government open as a political firestorm over immigration enforcement in Minneapolis threatens to derail a key spending deal. Funding for the Pentagon, Department of Homeland Security, and other agencies runs out on Saturday, and Senate Democrats say they'll block the package unless money for the DHS is stripped out, per the Hill. At the center of the standoff: Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection tactics in Minneapolis, where a Border Patrol agent fatally shot 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti over the weekend.

Democrats, angered by the incident and broader enforcement operations in the city, are demanding substantial changes, including bans on masked officers during operations and requirements for judicial search warrants before entering homes. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer—who called what's going on in Minnesota "appalling," per PBS—has urged Republicans to overhaul ICE and CBP, noting that Democrats would fast-track the other five spending bills on the table if the DHS one is removed. Republicans are refusing to sever that bill from the broader six-bill package, however, arguing it actually reins in ICE and CBP funding compared with a stopgap measure and includes reforms that Democrats say they want.

Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama, who oversees Homeland Security appropriations in the Senate, points to added money for body cameras and de-escalation training, among other things, as evidence that the bill addresses public concerns. GOP lawmakers are also floating possible executive actions by President Trump to help tamp down tensions. His administration is already expected to pull back the federal presence in Minneapolis and is reportedly demoted Border Patrol leader Gregory Bovino, a lightning rod for critics.

The Guardian notes that even if a partial shutdown comes to pass, "the White House would require ICE agents to continue working," according to a GOP staffer. Despite outreach from the White House, Senate Democratic aides say no "realistic solutions" have been offered, raising the odds of at least a partial shutdown, per the Hill. Appropriations Chair Susan Collins put the six-bill package on the Senate calendar and says she hopes both sides will blink before funding lapses. The Senate's first procedural vote is set for Thursday, one day before the deadline, even as both moderate and hardline Republicans call for investigations into the Minneapolis shooting and urge the administration to cool tensions in the city.