Senate Approves Funding Package Following White House-Schumer Deal

The Senate approved a mammoth government spending package Friday evening funding vast portions of the federal government and a separate stopgap measure temporarily funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Lawmakers voted 71-29 to approve the funding package, which was endorsed by President Donald Trump. Five Republicans — Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Mike Lee of Utah, Ted Cruz of Texas, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Rick Scott of Florida — opposed the measure.

The cohort includes leading fiscal hawks and Republicans who were critical of the appropriations package for not funding immigration enforcement for the full fiscal year.

The passage of the massive spending package came after the White House and Senate Democrats reached a deal Thursday to separate the DHS measure — funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) — from five additional spending bills that passed the House on Jan. 22. Under the agreement, a stopgap funding measure, known as a continuing resolution, would fund DHS for two weeks and five appropriations bills that fund nearly 80% of the federal budget would be signed into law

The funding deal hit a snag after several senators, including Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, held up a vote for nearly 24 hours until various policy concerns were resolved. Graham secured commitments from Senate Majority Leader John Thune to hold a vote on sanctuary cities legislation and a provision allowing him and other senators to sue the government in response to former special counsel Jack Smith’s probe.

Senate Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, unanimously opposed funding the DHS for the remainder of the fiscal year absent reform, citing the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday.

The White House, appearing eager to avoid a government shutdown after the record-breaking 43-day funding lapse in late 2025, signed off on a two-week extension for DHS funding sought by Democrats while negotiations regarding reforms to federal immigration enforcement.

Trump implored lawmakers to pass the spending agreement in a Truth Social post Thursday, citing the need to avoid another “long and damaging” shutdown.

“Hopefully, both Republicans and Democrats will give a very much needed Bipartisan ‘YES’ Vote,” Trump wrote.

Every Democrat — and seven Republicans — voted against advancing a House-passed six-bill appropriations package including the DHS funding Thursday afternoon. That failed vote meant the Senate had to change course to shorten the duration of the shutdown set to begin Saturday at 12:01 a.m.

A partial shutdown is all but certain to occur because the House of Representatives will have to approve the Senate agreement. As of Friday, the House of Representatives is not scheduled to hold votes until Monday evening.

The spending agreement negotiated with the White House may not come without political risks for Schumer, who previously enraged the Democratic Party’s far-left flank for supporting a Trump-backed funding bill in March 2025.

Left-wing activist groups slammed Schumer for striking a deal to temporarily fund DHS at current spending levels.

“Leader Schumer should ask the Minnesotans who are watching their neighbors get killed in cold blood if a deal with no plan to stop ICE is enough right now,” MoveOn spokeswoman Britt Jacovich said Thursday.

In an effort to whip support for the bill, The White House noted the spending package funds a 3.8% pay raise for U.S. service members and invests in U.S. shipbuilding among other provisions.

It is unclear whether the White House and GOP leaders will agree to Schumer’s demands to substantially reform federal immigration enforcement in the next several weeks. The lead Democrat wants immigration officers to take off their masks, end roving patrols and enact new rules on warrants.

However, even some GOP lawmakers acknowledged that public opinion is in favor of overhauling federal immigration enforcement.

“The mood of Congress is that ICE needs to be reformed,” Republican Arkansas Sen. John Boozman said Thursday. “I think that’s the mood of the country right now. So that’s the direction that we’re moving.”

Caden Olson contributed to this report.