dailyloe.com – President Trump signed a memo authorizing pay for Transportation Security Administration employees during a Department of Homeland Security funding shutdown. The Department of Homeland Security stated TSA workers could receive paychecks as soon as Monday. This unilateral action comes amid a congressional stalemate over a new funding bill.
House Republican leadership rejected the latest deal to end the DHS shutdown late last week. The House of Representatives voted 213-203 to approve a stopgap funding bill through May 22. Only three Democrats voted with the Republican majority on this measure.
This House vote effectively ensures the ongoing DHS shutdown continues with no clear resolution. The House bill directly conflicts with a measure passed by the Senate early Friday. The Senate bill would have restored funding for most of DHS but excluded immigration enforcement.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, dismissed the Senate’s funding measure as a joke. However, the House’s proposed plan faces significant obstacles to passage in the Senate. Lawmakers in the Senate have already left Washington for a planned recess.
Democrats have vowed to oppose any funding plan that supports Immigration and Customs Enforcement without reforms. The Senate’s passed bill did not include extra funding for ICE or Border Patrol. It also excluded Democratic demands to limit federal immigration officers’ tactics.
The political deadlock highlights deep divisions over immigration policy and government spending. The situation leaves thousands of federal employees in financial uncertainty. A long-term solution to the DHS funding crisis remains elusive.[]
Source: NPR
