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President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed into law a sweeping government funding package to end a brief federal shutdown that began over the weekend, restoring full operations across most of the government while setting up a high-stakes fight over immigration enforcement funding in the days ahead.
The bill cleared the House earlier Tuesday by a 217–214 vote, following Senate passage last week, and funds federal agencies through the end of September — with one major exception. Funding for the Department of Homeland Securitywill expire again on Feb. 13, giving Congress roughly 10 days to negotiate new restrictions on immigration enforcement sought by Democrats.
The stopgap for DHS reflects growing backlash after federal agents fatally shot Renee Good and Alex Pretti, two U.S. citizens, during separate encounters in Minneapolis, igniting protests and renewed scrutiny of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.
Shutdown ends, immigration fight intensifies
The deal averts a longer shutdown but tees up an intense round of negotiations as Democrats push for changes to rein in ICE and CBP operations, including limits on warrantless arrests, use-of-force standards and accountability measures for agents.
Earlier Tuesday, House Republicans voted 217–215 on a procedural motion to advance the legislation, with no Democratic support. The GOP’s razor-thin majority was again on display as leaders worked to corral votes ahead of final passage.
A final vote on the bill had been delayed by a day after Democrats privately signaled they would not supply the large number of votes needed to fast-track the measure on Monday.
Drama on the House floor
The procedural “rule” vote was held open for an extended period after Rep. John Rose, R-Tenn., unexpectedly joined Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., in voting against it. Massie, a consistent opponent of large spending bills, was widely viewed as immovable.
Rose, who complained that the Senate had failed to advance the SAVE Act — legislation requiring proof of citizenship to vote — later flipped to “yes,” allowing the bill to move forward.
In the final vote, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., the top Democratic appropriator in the House, supported the bill, while House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., opposed it.
Democrats defend tactical compromise
DeLauro argued that separating DHS funding was a strategic move to focus congressional pressure on immigration enforcement without risking disruptions across the rest of the government.
“I believe this is an opportunity to isolate DHS and go at it, hammer and tongs, tooth and nail — whatever phrase you want to use — rather than having to figure out what the heck is going to happen to five other bills and all those departments,” DeLauro said. “There’s unbelievable bipartisan, bicameral support on those bills. So why squander that?”
She added that lawmakers should now spend the next 10 days focused exclusively on DHS funding.
White House urges cooperation
The agreement to temporarily fund DHS was negotiated between Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and the White House following the Minneapolis shootings, which sparked national outrage and unified Senate Democrats.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said the Trump administration has engaged “in good faith” with Democrats and urged cooperation from Democratic governors and mayors.
“We hope that they will operate in good faith over the next 10 days, as we negotiate this,” Johnson told reporters. “The president, again, has reached out. We are restoring calm in Minnesota, but again, we make the plea and the demand that the governors and the mayors in these blue states and blue cities participate with federal law enforcement.”
Steep odds for DHS agreement
The Senate passed the funding package last Friday by a 71–29 vote, after Trump publicly urged House Republicans to approve it without changes, tamping down internal GOP demands to rewrite the deal.
Even so, lawmakers in both parties acknowledge that striking a full-year DHS funding agreement by Feb. 13 will be difficult.
“There are vast differences,” said Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., a senior member of the Appropriations Committee. “I would expect — and I’m hearing — that there could be just another, we kick the can down the road a little bit longer until those differences can be worked out … at least, probably, March 1.”
For now, the shutdown has ended — but the immigration funding fight is only beginning.
