News - The Senate Faces a Standoff as Government Shutdown Looms Hours Away

In a nail-biting countdown to a potential partial government shutdown, the U.S. Senate finds itself at a stalemate on Friday, ensnared by a blockade from Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. With mere hours ticking down, the Senate urgently seeks a path to avert the shutdown. A hurriedly crafted 11th-hour compromise from Senate Democrats, in conjunction with the White House, proposes separating the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill from a larger package containing five other critical funding bills. This maneuver, however, hinges on obtaining the unanimous consent of all 100 Senators to proceed before the Friday night deadline. Senator Graham's demands for lifting his blockade are explicit: he requires assurances of future Senate votes on two controversial issues. The first involves legislation to eliminate 'sanctuary cities' that do not align with administration immigration policies. The second request centers on what are known as Arctic Frost provisions. These provisions would enable members of Congress to initiate lawsuits against the government should federal investigators access their phone records surreptitiously. These Arctic Frost elements were previously excised from the funding package by the House. The critical question remains whether lawmakers are amenable to accommodating Graham's stipulations, as deadlock persisted through Friday afternoon. Even if the Senate successfully advances the bills past this blockade, the likelihood of a transient partial shutdown remains high. This is due to the necessity of sending the legislation back to the House of Representatives for further consideration. The House is currently in recess until Monday, presenting an additional hurdle. Speaker Mike Johnson expressed to ABC News' Senior White House Correspondent Selina Wang on Thursday evening that assembling lawmakers before the weekend concludes might be untenable. Complicating matters, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries refrained from unequivocally endorsing the Senate-White House accord earlier on Friday. "We don't have a comprehensive proposal before us," Jeffries commented. "Apparently, Lindsey Graham is impeding the process, endangering a government shutdown, as Senate Republicans persist in endorsing the use of taxpayer funding to harm American citizens." The Thursday-announced agreement aims to secure funding for most of the federal government through September. However, the DHS would receive funding for only an additional two weeks at current levels to provide lawmakers the necessary time to negotiate the package further. The current funding dispute over DHS ignited following the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal law enforcement in Minneapolis over the preceding weekend. Jeffries emphasized that Democrats stand firm on their call for fundamental reforms within DHS, including requiring judicial warrants, prohibiting ICE personnel from donning masks, mandating the activation of body cameras, and ending indiscriminate ICE raids. "Democrats in the Senate, with Chuck Schumer at the helm and supported by the House, have made a resounding demand: Disentangle the five bills enjoying bipartisan backing, and separately engage with ensuring ICE adheres to control measures. This includes our non-negotiable demand for judicial warrants before ICE can intrude on homes or forcibly remove individuals from their vehicles," Jeffries insisted.