No End in Sight for DHS Shutdown as TSA Pay Eases Pressure on Lawmakers

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown is the longest on record for any single federal agency, with the shutdown now more than 45 days old. And there is no sign that it will end anytime soon with Congress away on a two-week recess and talks on immigration enforcement changes making little progress. 

In fact, one anonymous Trump administration official told Politico that “people are thinking this will go into the summer.” 

And with pay headed to employees of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to relieve pressure at airport security checkpoints one DHS official granted permission to speak anonymously stated, “Remember in the last shutdown, it was airport chaos that forced the seven Democrats to switch sides and fund the government.”

Last Minute Funding Drama

Before Congress adjourned, the Senate unanimously passed a bill at 2:30am Friday funding DHS minus Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). However, the House instead passed its own bill funding DHS for two-months, rejecting the Senate plan.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is reportedly going to spend much of the break trying to find a bipartisan way out of the stalemate, though expectations for a breakthrough are low.  

Democrats say any funding agreement must include immigration enforcement changes and argue that proposals floated by Republicans do not go far enough. A spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said Democrats “would not accept anything less than what was passed unanimously by the Senate,” adding that: “Republicans shouldn’t look to Senate Democrats to fix their own internal caucus problems.”

TSA Paychecks

This comes as TSA employees started receiving paychecks for back pay during the shutdown after President Trump signed an executive order. 

“Most TSA employees received a retroactive paycheck today that included at least two full paychecks covering pay periods 4 and 5 today,” said DHS spokesperson Lauren Bis. 

The move has reportedly cut down on some of the massive lines at airports, although hour long waits are still reported in some cases. And TSA callout rates remained more than 30 percent on Sunday, March 29, at various airports including New Orleans, Atlanta, and BWI Thurgood Marshall.