By the end of the week, Republican and Democratic lawmakers must reach a compromise on funding for the Department of Homeland Security to avoid another partial government shutdown.
The ongoing federal immigration raids across the country, along with the recent killings of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, have pushed Democrats to seek reforms aimed at changing how federal immigration authorities conduct operations.
Since the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Democrats have called for changes to immigration enforcement nationwide, including requiring warrants for searches and seizures, banning immigration agents from wearing face masks and mandating the use of body cameras.
As both sides work toward a deal, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats delivered proposed legislative text reflecting their 10-item list of demands to Republican leadership over the weekend, as reported by ABC News. In response, Republicans presented a counterproposal that Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said they rejected on Feb. 9.
Details of the GOP counteroffer have not been made public, but Democrats said it lacked “details” or substantive “legislative text.”
“The initial GOP response is both incomplete and insufficient in terms of addressing the concerns Americans have about ICE’s lawless conduct. Democrats await additional detail and text,” Schumer and Jeffries said in the statement.
In a post on social media, Schumer said and suggested it was now the GOP’s turn to respond.
“We’re asking ICE to do nothing more than follow the standards that the vast majority of law enforcement agencies already follow,” he wrote. “Republicans, the ball is in your court. The clock is ticking.”
As noted by The Hill, Republicans have indicated support for some proposals, including a body camera mandate and an end to roving patrols, but opposition has emerged over Democrats’ call to ban the use of face masks.
At the same time, GOP lawmakers are pushing for measures of their own, including proposals to punish state and local officials who do not cooperate with immigration enforcement operations, among other priorities.
With Feb. 13 drawing closer, Republicans and Democrats must reach and pass a solution in both chambers by the end of Friday to avoid a DHS shutdown.
In addition to DHS, agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration, Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Secret Service, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and FEMA would also be affected, even as lawmakers’ focus remains on Immigration and Customs Enforcement reforms, ABC News reported.
As negotiations continue, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on Feb. 9 that lawmakers may need more time to reach a compromise and urged Democrats to support a stopgap funding measure to keep DHS operating.
“We are just a few days away from the deadline that Democrats chose,” Thune said. “And it’s very possible we won’t have our work finished by then. If Democrats are serious about finding a solution, they may need to find more time to bring these efforts to a productive conclusion,” Thune said while speaking to reporters.
Originally published on Latin Times
