Graham lifts hold on government funding deal with just hours to shutdown deadline

The Senate made significant progress on Friday towards passing a funding package, despite the looming threat of a partial government shutdown. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham ultimately lifted his hold on the legislation, paving the way for the Senate to advance the funding bills just before the deadline.

Intense negotiations throughout the day resulted in a last-minute agreement between Senate Democrats and the White House. The deal involved separating the Department of Homeland Security funding bill from the other five funding bills, gaining the approval of all 100 senators to move forward. However, there is still a possibility of a short partial shutdown as the legislation will need to be reconsidered by the House.

Earlier in the day, Senator Graham outlined his conditions for lifting his hold on the bills, which included a commitment to vote on his bill to end sanctuary cities and a vote on Arctic Frost provisions. These provisions, which allow members of Congress to sue the government for accessing their phone records without permission, had been removed from the House-passed funding package. Senate Majority Leader John Thune expressed support for Graham’s demands, leading to Graham’s decision to lift his hold and vote in favor of the package.

The House, on the other hand, is currently in recess until Monday, with Speaker Mike Johnson indicating that reconvening before then may not be feasible. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries refrained from expressing support for the spending agreement reached by Senate Democrats and the White House, citing ongoing disagreements, particularly regarding funding for the Department of Homeland Security.

The agreement reached on Thursday would fund most of the federal government through September, with DHS receiving two additional weeks of funding at current levels to allow for further negotiations. The funding dispute over DHS was triggered by the tragic death of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in a shooting involving federal law enforcement in Minneapolis. Democrats are adamant about implementing reforms at the department, such as requiring judicial warrants for ICE operations, prohibiting ICE agents from wearing masks, mandating the use of body-worn cameras, and ending indiscriminate raids by ICE.

Senator Chuck Schumer and House Democrats have emphasized the need to address these issues separately from the bipartisan funding bills. Jeffries reiterated the stance that judicial warrants should be a prerequisite for ICE activities to protect individuals from intrusive actions. Democrats remain steadfast in their commitment to ensuring accountability and transparency within the Department of Homeland Security.