BBC – The US Senate has blocked a crucial funding package needed to avert a government shutdown, as the White House and Democratic leaders continue negotiations over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations.
Democrats have pushed to strip funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from a $1.2 trillion federal spending bill (£870 billion), following the fatal shooting of an American man in Minneapolis last week, reports Gazeta Express.
Democratic leadership in the White House and the Senate had been close to an agreement that would have provided a short-term funding extension for DHS, according to CBS, the BBC’s US partner.
If no agreement is reached, a second government shutdown within a few months could begin this weekend.
How likely is a government shutdown?
The spending bill has already passed the House of Representatives, but requires 60 votes in the Senate to advance.
Among the changes Democrats are demanding are requirements for federal agents to obtain arrest warrants before making arrests, as well as clearer rules governing how agents identify themselves.
In the 100-member Senate, Republicans hold only 53 seats, meaning passage of the bill would require support from at least some Democratic senators.
A procedural vote to advance the budget failed in the Senate on Thursday by a vote of 45–55. All Democrats voted against it, along with eight Republicans who said they were concerned about unnecessary spending.
Earlier this week, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said:
“I will vote against any legislation that funds ICE until it is restrained and reviewed, and Senate Democrats are overwhelmingly united on this issue.”
Senate Republican Majority Leader John Thune said that “productive” negotiations are ongoing.
If changes are made, the bill would need to be reapproved by the House, whose lawmakers are not scheduled to return until Monday.
On Wednesday, several Senate Democrats escalated their demands, explicitly calling for the dismissal of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and for structural reforms within both Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
“This is madness,” Schumer said. “This terror must stop.”
Some Republicans pushed back, with Texas Senator John Cornyn stating that “any changes should not come at the cost of a government shutdown.”
What is a ‘partial shutdown’ and who could be affected?
Not all of the US federal government would be affected if a shutdown occurs this weekend.
Legislation funding dozens of agencies through the end of the 2026 fiscal year, which ends on 30 September, has already been approved.
These agencies — including the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Department of Veterans Affairs — are funded.
However, other branches are included in the same spending bill as DHS, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Health, the Treasury, and the federal court system.
In practice, a prolonged shutdown could lead to disruptions in court operations and medical research, or delays in employment statistics.
The Internal Revenue Service is also among the agencies that would be affected, meaning tax processing — including refunds — could be disrupted.
DHS is a sprawling department that includes multiple agencies, such as ICE, CBP, the Coast Guard, and the Secret Service.
Employees deemed “essential” to agency operations would continue working but would not be paid until funding is restored — unless alternative funding sources are found, as the Trump administration did for military personnel last year.
How long did the last shutdown last?
The most recent shutdown lasted 43 days, from 1 October to 12 November last year, making it the longest in US history.
Democrats initially refused to support the funding bill, demanding that Republicans agree to extend health insurance subsidies for low-income Americans that were set to expire at the end of the year.
Eventually, enough Democrats crossed party lines to help pass the bill.
That shutdown left around 1.4 million federal workers on unpaid leave or working without pay. Food assistance programs were disrupted, and air travel across the US was severely affected.
Since 1981, there have been a total of 16 government shutdowns, although some lasted only a few days.
