Democrats have been clear we are willing tonight to provide the votes to open up every part of the Department of Homeland Security while we resolve our narrow differences on how ICE is terrorizing our communities. So almost every single day last week, Democrats went to the Senate floor and said, 'Let's open up [TSA]'. Republicans said no. 'Let's open up the Coast Guard.' Republicans said no. They want to hold TSA hostage so that they can continue getting Democrats to fund the illegality happening at ICE. Let's just isolate our differences. Let's not hold TSA hostage any longer.
Reopen TSA and all parts of the Department of Homeland Security not affected by disagreements about ICE, while continuing to push for reforms of ICE and CBP.
Occurrences
Democrats have repeatedly proposed bills to fund other parts of DHS while lawmakers negotiate reforms to ICE and CBP.
Democrats have tried again and again to pay TSA while negotiations continue on reforms on ICE and Border Patrol but Republicans have now blocked us eight times and counting.
I’ll continue fighting to rein in ICE and ensure they abide by the same standards that other law enforcement officers have to follow.
Evidence
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy attempted unsuccessfully last week to enter a DHS facility in San Antonio, Texas, also after providing 24 hours-notice of his visit.
On Thursday, Senate Democrats blocked a fourth vote to fund the Department of Homeland Security, refusing to fund the agency without any reforms to ICE and CBP.
Democrats have tried again and again to pay TSA while negotiations continue on reforms on ICE and Border Patrol but Republicans have now blocked us eight times and counting.
Democrats have repeatedly proposed bills to fund other parts of DHS while lawmakers negotiate reforms to ICE and CBP. Republicans generally say the agency must be funded as a whole.
U.S. Senator Chris Murphy objected to the Department of Homeland Security’s transfer notification that would move $312.5 million from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
DHS has been shut down since Feb. 14. In addition to ICE and CBP, the shutdown affects other agencies housed within the department, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the TSA.
Even without renewed DHS funding, ICE and CBP have enough money, through last year’s Republican tax-and-spending bill, to continue immigration enforcement operations.
On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune proposed to Mr. Trump that Republicans could vote to fund other aspects of DHS and wait to pass funding for ICE and CBP in a separate budget bill. The president refused, demanding that Congress fund all of DHS and adding that they need to first pass the SAVE America Act, a bill that would mandate people prove their U.S. citizenship to register to vote, and to show ID at the polls.
Democrats have tried to fund TSA six times in two weeks. Republican obstruction is denying TSA workers pay and creating havoc at airports. While negotiations continue over ICE, there is no reason TSA should be held hostage. Republicans must stop blocking TSA funding immediately.
Senate Republicans have blocked legislation to fund TSA, CISA, Coast Guard, FEMA, & other important DHS functions 10 times in total as talks to rein in ICE & CBP continue.
After objecting to nine attempts by Democrats to fund the TSA, Republicans finally relented. Rather than pass commonsense legislation to fund these agencies and address the chaos at America’s airports, Republicans spent all week inflicting needless pain on travelers, trying to disenfranchise millions of American citizens from voting, and defending Trump’s deeply unpopular war in Iran. I’m glad they came to their senses and I’ll do all that I can to push for safeguards to ensure that our immigration laws are enforced in a way that doesn’t cause chaos and violence and waste taxpayer dollars.
After more than a month of a partial government shutdown, I’m glad to see Senate Republicans have finally come to their senses and have agreed to fund most of the department — paying our TSA agents and making sure our Coast Guard and disaster response agency have the resources they need. I’ll continue fighting to rein in ICE and ensure they abide by the same standards that other law enforcement officers have to follow.
Amidst Republican’s bitter intra-party divide, the U.S. Senate today held a pro forma session and once again gave its unanimous stamp of approval to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding legislation. The Republican-controlled Senate officially re-approved bipartisan language identical to what it passed last week to end the partial DHS shutdown, which began in the wake of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by out of control federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents who have yet to be held accountable.
Assessments
The evidence overwhelmingly shows that after prolonged negotiations and repeated attempts—many of which were initially blocked—funding for TSA and most of the Department of Homeland Security was ultimately approved by the U.S. Senate during the same term, ending the partial government shutdown and reopening the relevant components of DHS. Multiple sources confirm that Democratic lawmakers, including Chris Murphy, continued to push for reforms to ICE and CBP while ensuring the critical services of TSA and other DHS agencies resumed. Although partisan gridlock delayed implementation, the core promise to reopen TSA and DHS (excluding ICE/CBP) while pursuing ICE/CBP reform was fulfilled, with clear and documented legislative efforts. The effort_badge is warranted due to the multiple serious legislative attempts before final passage.
Despite prolonged contention and multiple failed attempts—most often due to Republican opposition—evidence demonstrates the Senate ultimately passed bipartisan DHS funding legislation in 2026, reopening TSA and key parts of DHS. Multiple sources confirm the restoration of funding for TSA and other agencies while continued efforts to reform ICE and CBP are acknowledged. The legislative process was arduous with a bipartisan outcome, and the specific elements of the campaign promise (reopening TSA and affected DHS parts, pushing for ICE/CBP reforms) were substantively met in the same Senate term.
The evidence shows that Senator Murphy and Democrats made multiple legislative attempts to fund TSA and other parts of DHS separately from ICE and CBP, while seeking reforms. However, these efforts were consistently blocked by Republicans and ultimately failed to result in reopening TSA or unaffected DHS divisions while separately debating immigration enforcement agencies. Despite substantial effort, the campaign promise was not fulfilled.