Senate Republicans are no longer playing games. After unnecessarily conceding to Democratic demands, Chuck Schumer and the Democrats decided to do a 180-degree turn on funding. It was also something the Democrats wanted: a split DHS funding bill that funds most of the agency, except ICE and Border Patrol. It wasn’t enough suddenly, leading Trump to issue an order to pay TSA agents through last year’s tax cut bill, and Democrats to pass the funding bill via voice vote before leaving the Capitol. Of course, they knew the House GOP didn’t approve of this move, leading to intra-party complaints on top of the institutional rivalry.
There was a pro forma session today, where Senate Republicans could have tried to pass the House’s 60-day continuing resolution, but Democrats were prepared. Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) waited in his darkened lair, ready to object to unanimous consent.
Yes, the GOP didn’t give in on de-masking for ICE or judicial warrants, but the Democrats managed to delay things for another two weeks. With the Democrats pushing back against GOP efforts, the buzz is that when the Senate reconvenes after the Easter break, they will fund all of DHS, including ICE and Border Patrol, for three years, without any concessions via reconciliation.
🚨 JUST IN: The Senate GOP is reportedly DONE negotiating with Democrats and will move to fund ICE for THREE YEARS in budget reconciliation, which only needs 50 votes and JD Vance
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) March 30, 2026
"We're taking this off the table." — Sen. Hoeven
They should just NUKE THE FILIBUSTER and be FULLY… https://t.co/aLgoXgHf1N pic.twitter.com/K0UFJDai0Y
First, I’ll believe it when I see it. Senate Republicans aren’t known for these ‘go for the jugular’ moves, and John Thune usually doesn’t fit that mold. If this does come to fruition, I will do somersaults, though I’d rather see us nuke the legislative filibuster to pass this bill and the SAVE Act. Second, do they have the votes? Because Thom Tillis, Lisa Murkowski, Mitch McConnell, and John Curtis could be a problem.
