WASHINGTON—What a difference a few weeks can make when it comes to funding the federal government.
Just two weeks ago, there was general consensus that no one on Capitol Hill had an appetite for another shutdown following the record closure of the federal government in late 2025. That shutdown ended with a short-term funding measure keeping the government open through Jan. 30, with the assumption Congress would work out longer-term funding agreements.
Six of the 12 annual spending bills for the current budget year have been signed into law by President Donald Trump. Six more are awaiting action in the Senate, including a bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Those remaining bills were widely assumed to be all but guaranteed to pass.
That was before recent incidents in Minnesota involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement and state residents, two of whom were killed by ICE agents. Now, Democrats say they will not support any funding package that includes additional funding for ICE.
‘Grassroots Forcing the Issue’
“Whether the Democratic side has an appetite for a shutdown or not, their grassroots is forcing the issue,” said Jason Stverak, chief advocacy officer with the Defense Credit Union Council. “They see it as a political issue that could possibly be used against the president and his agenda. I don’t think anyone could have predicted the impact of what happened with the loss of life as part of the protest. It galvanized Sen. Chuck Schumer that they are not going to move forward with legislation at this point that provides $10 billion in funding to ICE. At this moment, they are going to hold firm unless there are major concessions somewhere.”
‘I Will Vote No’
Schumer said in a statement: “Democrats sought common-sense reforms in the Department of Homeland Security spending bill, but because of Republicans’ refusal to stand up to President Trump, the DHS bill is woefully inadequate to rein in the abuses of ICE. I will vote no.”
Stverak noted that even small changes to Senate legislation would require the bills to be sent back to the House for another vote, a difficult task before the Jan. 30 deadline.
As The CU Daily reported here, the Defense Council has flagged concerns that any impasse over the remaining funding bills could affect members of the military and Coast Guard.
The Forecast
So, will the funding packages pass?
“It’s the same waiting game we saw at the end of September to see who is going to blink first,” Stverak said.
Greg Mesack, senior vice president of advocacy with America’s Credit Unions, said he believes the dispute over ICE funding will not affect committee markups, but will “certainly have an impact” once legislation reaches the Senate floor.
“There are a lot of discussions happening about what’s playing out in Minnesota,” he said.
