President Trump Orders DHS to Pay Employees During Shutdown as Democrats Call for Early End to Recess

President Trump issued a memo telling the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to pay all of its employees during the ongoing shutdown, noting that “these circumstances constitute an emergency situation compromising the Nation’s security.” 

In a memo, the president directed Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to work with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to "use funds that have a reasonable and logical nexus to the functions of DHS” to provide the “compensation and benefits that would have accrued to them if not for the Democrat-led DHS shutdown.”

"More than 35,000 employees, including Coast Guard civilians, Federal Emergency Management Agency employees helping to prepare the Nation for disaster response, and cybersecurity professionals at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, have gone without a paycheck for nearly 2 months because of congressional Democrats," President Trump wrote in the memo.

This comes after President Trump signed a similar memo ordering Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees be paid in a bid to stem employee callouts and trim security lines at the nation’s airports. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have received funding during the shutdown with money from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. 

Democrats and Republicans have blamed each other for the shutdown, which stems from a dispute over funding for immigration enforcement agencies.

House Controls Next Steps

Meanwhile, Democrats are calling on House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to end the congressional recess early. This as the Senate again sent over legislation funding all of DHS, minus ICE and CBP. 

“There is a bipartisan bill that has been sent over from the Senate, not once, but twice. Every single Democrat, every single Republican in the Senate supports that legislation,” said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). 

Although Speaker Johnson endorsed the bill the second time it was sent over from the Senate, he declined to move the bill during a pro forma session. 

This as conservatives are upset the bill doesn’t fund ICE and CBP from the outset instead of through the reconciliation process. 

“There’s no desire to pass the Senate open borders bill and then hope that we get a reconciliation bill that would close the border. They’ve got to come together,” said Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL). 

Both chambers are not scheduled to return until April 13.