By Ginika Igboke
Senate Democrats on Jan. 28 outlined sweeping proposals to overhaul the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and federal immigration enforcement, as lawmakers race to meet a Friday deadline to fund DHS and five other federal departments.
“Our caucus is united over three main legislative objectives,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said at a Wednesday press conference, signaling that Democrats’ support for a DHS funding bill would hinge on meeting those demands.
First, Schumer called for ending what he described as “roving patrols” by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in U.S. cities, advocating instead for operations that require warrants and coordination with state and local law enforcement.
“Second, we want to enforce accountability,” Schumer said. “Federal agents should be held to the same use-of-force standards as state and local law enforcement, and be held accountable when those rules are violated.”
Third, Democrats are seeking changes that would require immigration agents to wear body cameras, remove face coverings, and carry proper state identification during operations.
With a Jan. 30 funding deadline approaching, Senate Republicans had initially planned to combine DHS funding with less contentious appropriations bills covering the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development. The package was widely expected to pass, as Democratic leaders had earlier signaled a desire to avoid a repeat of the 43-day government shutdown in 2025.
That dynamic shifted after immigration agents were involved in a second fatal shooting of an American citizen in Minneapolis. Schumer called the incident “appalling” and said Democrats would withhold support for DHS funding absent reforms.
Schumer has urged Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to break the package into six separate bills, allowing lawmakers to vote on DHS funding independently. Democrats say they would support the other five measures, leaving “96 percent of the federal government … funded,” according to Schumer.
Thune has rejected that approach, arguing that splitting the package could complicate passage and risk sending altered legislation back to the House. Speaking earlier Wednesday, Thune said Republicans—and President Donald Trump—are open to negotiations but stressed that preventing a shutdown remains his top priority.
“I think the administration is willing to sit down with [Democrats] and have a discussion, perhaps a negotiation, about how we move forward,” Thune said. “But the one thing I do know is that a government shutdown is not in anybody’s interest.”
“We need to fund the government,” he added. “There is a bill sitting in the Senate today that, if passed, can go to the president’s desk and complete all 12 appropriations bills for the year.”
Lawmakers Weigh In
A possible fallback option—a continuing resolution to fund DHS at current levels—was dismissed by Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).
“No, not another dime to this lawless operation,” Van Hollen said.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who has been critical of the administration’s immigration enforcement strategy and recently said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is “way out of her depth,” told reporters Wednesday that he does not support shutting down the government over the dispute.
Tillis warned that a partial shutdown affecting DHS could disrupt agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), arguing that separating DHS funding “would stand in the way of FEMA and other disaster response.”
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), meanwhile, rejected Democratic calls for immigration agents to stop wearing masks during operations, characterizing the proposal as “an extension of anti-police advocacy,” linking it to slogans such as “Defund the Police” and “Abolish ICE.”
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