The reconciliation bill to fund ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is now headed to the House after most Senate Republicans passed the proposal on Thursday night, and it ultimately accomplished funding through 2029 for the agencies and sidelined Democrats' immigration enforcement demands.
Many Democrats were calling for the use of judicial warrants for immigration-related arrests as opposed to administrative ones, as well as an end to masked agents and roving patrols. Republicans opted to pursue reconciliation to fund the immigration enforcement agencies to get DHS reopened after a lengthy shutdown of the department, as reconciliation allows for only 51 votes for Senate passage as opposed to the standard 60-vote threshold.
“Democrats side with illegals over American citizens every chance they get. But thanks to reconciliation, we didn’t need their votes or have to accept their radical demands that would have tied the hands of federal law enforcement,” Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN) told Townhall in an exclusive statement Friday.
“Now ICE and CBP have the funding they need to keep the border secure and continue mass deportations through the end of President Trump’s term,” he added.
A significant portion of funding for Trump's immigration goals was already obtained through the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" last July, but other DHS agencies like FEMA were hung out to dry when the DHS shutdown ran from February through April. Meanwhile, the reconciliation bill is expected to close other immigration-specific funding gaps that were not covered when DHS reopened in April.
Former Acting ICE Director Jonathan Fahey explained to Townhall on Friday morning that the movement on reconciliation showed that Democrats “gave up the game on this thing with their list of demands.”
“Because when there were situations where the Republicans were willing to concede or to give them some of the things they wanted, they rejected that in favor of just shutting down the agency,” Fahey said.
“[Democrats] don't care about ICE and ICE operations,” he added. “They just wanna stop ICE from doing what they are required to do, which is deport illegal aliens.”
Fahey explained that some of the Democrats' wishes, like judicial warrants, were some of the “problematic” points for potential compromise.
“As probably most people know, you can't get a judicial warrant from these ICE arrests. They're issued out of the Executive Branch. So it didn't even mechanically make any sense,” Fahey said, calling it an “unworkable part” of the party’s demands.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer fired back against the proposal early Friday morning, saying that Republicans “pumped another $70 billion into Trump’s personal police force.”
Senate Republicans just passed a rotten bill that makes their priorities painfully clear:
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) June 5, 2026
More money for Donald Trump, more power for Donald Trump, and nothing to lower costs for working families. pic.twitter.com/keisHYfXVu
“The Republican agenda is now written in black and white: a slush fund for Trump, tax dodges for Trump, a ballroom for Trump, a private militia for Trump,” Schumer stated. “For hard-working Americans? Nothing.”
The Republican-majority House is expected to pass the legislation before it heads to Trump's desk for a final signature.
A third reconciliation bill is expected to be pushed by congressional Republicans this summer, which is expected to focus on anti-fraud policy and other budgetary proposals.
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