The risk of a U.S. government shutdown looms again: Senate key vote fails to advance funding bill

The United States is once again facing the risk of a federal government shutdown, as a procedural vote held by the Senate on Thursday failed to advance a government funding bill already passed by the House of Representatives. By Friday, several federal departments, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are set to run out of operating funds.

According to CCTV News, on Thursday the 29th local time, the U.S. Senate voted on a government funding bill. As the number of votes in favor was insufficient, the bill was not passed. The likelihood of another partial “shutdown” of the U.S. federal government at the end of the month due to running out of funds has increased significantly.

The vote count showed only 45 votes in favor of the funding bill and 55 votes against. This was mainly because seven Republican senators joined the Democrats in voting against it. According to Senate rules, funding bills require 60 votes to pass.

Democrats insist on removing DHS funding from the bill, citing recent incidents in Minnesota where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents repeatedly shot U.S. citizens during enforcement operations earlier this month. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer stated that Democrats are prepared to pass five bipartisan funding bills: "We are ready to fund 96% of federal departments today, but the DHS bill still needs substantial work."

The failure of the funding bill in Thursday’s key Senate vote dramatically increases the odds of a government shutdown this week but may also prompt negotiations between bipartisan senators to seek a resolution. If the parties fail to reach an agreement by midnight on Friday (Eastern Time), several key federal departments, including the Department of Defense, Treasury, State Department, and Labor Department, will face an interruption of operating funds.

Procedural Threshold Becomes Roadblock

It is reported that the failure of the government funding bill in Thursday’s procedural vote was anticipated. According to Senate rules, a minimum of 60 votes is required to avoid procedural filibustering. Currently, Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate, Democrats hold 45 seats, and there are 2 Independents who caucus with the Democrats.

The failed bill in question included funding for the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, Department of Treasury, State Department, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Labor, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Transportation, and Department of Education.

Reports state that seven conservative Republican senators voted with all Democratic senators against the bill, leading to its failure.

Additionally, Senate party leader John Thune changed his vote to “against” in order to be able to bring the bill up for a re-vote later. Before the vote, he stated that they were closer to avoiding a government shutdown, saying, “Let’s hope we can reach an agreement.”

Dispute Over Immigration Enforcement Becomes Main Divide

CCTV News reported that Senate Democratic leader Schumer previously stated that, due to ICE and Border Patrol agents recently shooting U.S. citizens during forced immigration enforcement in Minnesota, Democrats would block any funding bill in the Senate that includes DHS funding.

Other reports say Democrats are trying to force the Trump administration to change ICE policy, following the fatal encounter between Alex Pretti and federal agents in Minneapolis. Democrats are demanding that Republicans and the White House agree to separate DHS funding from the rest of the bill for further negotiation.

Reports pointed out that Senate Appropriations Vice Chair and Democratic Senator Patty Murray announced during Thursday morning’s Senate session that she would vote against the bill because the White House had still not agreed to separate DHS funding from the bill.

Murray said: "We have agreement on funding for child care, cancer research, air traffic controllers, our military, and more, but we've also made it clear that if there's not real progress on accountability, we cannot and will not move forward on the DHS funding bill."

Both Parties Seek Compromise

Reports state that, despite the failed procedural vote, there was still some optimism within the Senate on Thursday morning. There was progress on Wednesday between Schumer and the Trump team regarding the possible separation of the DHS bill, leaving it for future reform, and the bill could still move forward. A source close to the discussion said that, although no agreement has yet been reached, negotiations are ongoing and are progressing in a direction favorable to the Democrats.

As of Thursday morning, according to reports, party leaders from both sides and the White House are close to reaching an agreement. The plan being drafted would fund the other agencies in the bill through the end of September, but only temporarily extend funding for DHS, allowing further negotiations.

Before the procedural vote, Thune expressed hope, although he declined to say whether he would support certain Democratic proposals. He stated: "We're getting closer. Hopefully, we'll reach an agreement. My hope and expectation is, if the White House and Senate Democrats can resolve this issue, they'll come up with the votes needed for passage."

Risk of Government Shutdown Rises

If the Senate cannot get all 100 senators to agree to separate the DHS funding bill from the others, as Democrats demand, then several important agencies will face funding shortfalls, including the Department of Defense, Health and Human Services, Labor, Education, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.

The shutdown of these departments will begin at 12:01 AM Eastern Time on January 31. Any amendment to the bill, including removing DHS funding, would require another vote in the House of Representatives. The House is currently in recess.

According to reports, if an agreement is reached, the bill must be approved by both chambers, which means House members, where seats are closely divided between the parties, must return to Washington to vote, and final approval could be postponed until next Monday.

Even if a partial government shutdown occurs and DHS does not receive operating funds, ICE will still operate using funds provided under the Trump administration's domestic policy initiative passed last summer.

This is the second time since October 1 of last year that the Trump administration is facing a shutdown risk. Centrist Democratic Senator John Fetterman has repeatedly criticized his party for enforcing a 43-day government shutdown in the fall, but still voted against the bill this time. A source familiar with Fetterman's thinking told the media that he voted “no” anticipating that blocking the bill would create conditions for splitting the DHS funding measure from the other five spending bills.

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