Senate unanimously moves to fund most of DHS, except ICE and border patrol, in rare overnight session

Key Points:

• The Senate unanimously approved funding for most of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), excluding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and part of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), aiming to reopen key agencies like the TSA and Coast Guard.
• Senate Majority Leader John Thune indicated that while ICE and border patrol remain unfunded in this bill, Republicans had anticipated the impasse and included provisions for these agencies in last year's domestic policy package.
• The funding deadlock has caused pay delays for thousands of DHS workers, including TSA agents, leading to significant travel disruptions and missed flights nationwide.
• Senate Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, opposed funding ICE and border patrol without reforms, emphasizing their unified stance against what they called a "lawless" ICE and border patrol.
• Thune criticized Democrats for prioritizing political issues over policy solutions, stating that negotiations failed to produce the ICE reforms Democrats sought and accusing them of using the situation for political leverage.