Good Thursday evening. In this edition: Senate blocks DHS funding bill, queuing partial shutdown; and Homan announces end to Minnesota immigration surge.
Plus, EPA regulations, Mark Kelly and DC tax law.
Partial Shutdown
The Senate failed to advance a measure to fund the Homeland Security Department, all but guaranteeing a partial government shutdown will begin early Saturday morning.
The procedural vote was 52–47, falling short of the 60 votes needed to advance. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) was the lone Democrat to vote in favor.
Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) changed his vote to "no" so he can call up the measure again at a later time.
The Homeland Security Department — which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) — is currently operating under a stopgap funding measure set to expire at midnight Friday.
Even with a lapse in funding, ICE and CBP are expected to continue operations given the significant funding they received from Republicans' "one big, beautiful" reconciliation bill passed last summer.
Democrats are seeking changes to immigration enforcement operations in the wake of the killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis last month and say they will provide votes to extend the department's funding only if Republicans agree to significant reforms.
"This vote today asked a simple question: will you rein in ICE's abuses, or will you vote to extend the chaos? Republicans chose chaos, and the Democrats, we refused."
Republicans and Democrats have exchanged proposals, but little progress has been made toward a bipartisan agreement. Without a breakthrough, senators are expected to leave town Thursday and remain in recess next week for the Presidents' Day holiday.
"At the moment, we're not close,"Sen. Thune told reporters. "If and when there's a breakthrough, we'll make sure people are here to vote on it."
The impasse over DHS funding led to a four-day partial shutdown earlier this month, as Democrats demanded that the full-year funding bill for the department be removed from a larger spending package.
Lawmakers ultimately agreed to replace the full-year bill with a two-week stopgap funding the department at existing levels.
That stopgap was intended to give lawmakers more time to negotiate reforms, but it was not enough to reach a deal.
Border Czar Tom Homan announced the Trump administration is ending its large-scale surge of federal immigration officers in Minnesota, unwinding an operation that drew fierce opposition from residents and local officials and led to the fatal shootings of two American citizens.
"I have proposed, and President Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude," he said at a press conference in Minneapolis, citing arrests of "public safety threats" and "unprecedented levels of coordination" with state and local officials.
The campaign, dubbed "Operation Metro Surge," began in December and brought as many as 3,000 federal agents to the Twin Cities area to carry out immigration enforcement actions.
"A significant drawdown has already been underway this week and will continue through next week," Mr. Homan said.
Federal officials said the operation resulted in more than 4,000 arrests, though detailed case breakdowns have not been publicly released.
"As a result of our efforts here, Minnesota is now less of a sanctuary state for criminals," Mr. Homan said.
Federal agents shot three individuals, including killing U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti, sparking bipartisan outrage and leading to the dismissal of Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, who was replaced by Mr. Homan.
Since taking over the operation, Mr. Homan has sought to lower tensions by shifting to more targeted enforcement actions, increasing coordination with state and local governments, and reducing the number of officers deployed on the streets.
Last week, Mr. Homan announced a drawdown of 700 agents after he said state and local officials agreed to cooperate by turning over arrested immigrants.
Despite ending the surge, Mr. Homan said the administration will continue pursuing its mass deportation plan and maintain a "small footprint" of personnel in the area for "a period of time" as command transitions back to a local field office.
"If you are here in the country illegally, you are not exempt from our immigration laws," he said. "For those who say we are backing down from immigration enforcement or the promise of mass deportations, you are simply wrong."
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) said he was "cautiously optimistic" following the announcement but said the operation left the state with "deep damage" and "generational trauma."
"They left us with economic ruin,"he said at a press conference in St. Paul. "In some cases, they left us with many unanswered questions. Where are our children? Where and what is the process of the investigations into those that were responsible for the deaths of Renee and Alex?"
The governor, who has repeatedly decried the federal surge as an invasion, said his state would now move into a period of "recovery," including providing loans to small businesses impacted by the operations.
"It's going to be a long road,"he said. "But Minnesotans are decent, caring, loving neighbors and they are also some of the toughest damn people you'll ever find, and we're in this for as long as it takes."
Minnesota Mayor Jacob Frey (D) called the operation "catastrophic" for his city and local businesses.
"Now it's time for a great comeback," he wrote on social media. "We will show the same commitment to our immigrant residents and endurance in this reopening, and I'm hopeful the whole country will stand with us as we move forward."
Back in Washington, Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) blamed state and local leaders for the unrest in Minneapolis as he testified before the Senate Homeland Security Committee alongside other Minnesota officials.
"Make no mistake, it was all a direct result of radical sanctuary state and city policies in Minnesota," he told senators, saying the policies turned the state into "a safe haven for criminal illegal aliens."
Rep. Emmer specifically faulted Gov. Walz, Mayor Frey and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D), who also testified at the hearing.
"It didn't have to be this way,"Rep. Emmer said. "The chaos in Minneapolis was entirely preventable had local law enforcement been allowed to work with federal law enforcement from the beginning."
Attorney General Ellison insisted his state complied with the law and blamed "Operation Metro Surge" for the unrest, casting the surge as "retribution" by the Trump administration.
"This war on Minnesota is retribution, to be sure — our policies our values and how we vote — and it comes at a great cost," he said, referencing a Jan. 13 Truth Social post in which President Trump said "RECKONING & RETRIBUTION" were coming to the state.
Mr. Ellison said most detainees had no criminal records and accused agents of conducting warrantless searches and racial profiling.
"They sent 3,000 masked, armed men who are now kicking in doors, demanding papers, killing Minnesotans, not fighting fraud," he said.
The Trump administrationrevoked a landmark scientific finding that has served as the legal foundation for federal regulations limiting greenhouse gas emissions, saying the move would reduce up to $1.3 trillion in regulatory costs. "This is about as big as it gets," President Trump said, calling it the "single largest deregulatory action in American history." The EPA rule rescinds the 2009 endangerment finding, which determined that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare and has underpinned most climate regulations under the Clean Air Act. The president dismissed concerns about potential health and environmental impacts, saying, "It has nothing to do with public health. This was all a scam, a giant scam."
A federal judgerejected Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's effort to punish Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) over a video he participated in last year urging service members to refuse illegal orders. District Judge Richard Leon, a Bush appointee, ruled the actions were unconstitutionally retaliatory. "This Court has all it needs to conclude that Defendants have trampled on Senator Kelly's First Amendment freedoms and threatened the constitutional liberties of millions of military retirees," he wrote. "To say the least, our retired veterans deserve more respect from their Government, and our Constitution demands they receive it!" The ruling came days after a grand jury in Washington, DC, declined to indict Sen. Kelly and five other lawmakers who appeared in the video.
The Senatevoted49–47, along party lines, to repeal a Washington, DC, law that decoupled local taxes from the tax cuts approved in last year's "one big, beautiful" reconciliation bill. Republicans said the move would allow Washington residents to keep more of their money, while DC leaders warned it could complicate tax season and cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars in expected revenue. The House passed the joint disapproval resolution last week, 215–210, also along party lines. The measure now goes to President Trump, who has said he plans to sign it.
For your radar…
Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) are among the speakers at the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Friday. Watch LIVE online starting at 9:30am ET.
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