The White House shuts down Homeland Security at midnight
The White House has instructed the Department of Homeland Security to initiate shutdown procedures as its funding from Congress is set to expire at midnight — marking the third instance of parts of the US government shutting down in the past six months. The shutdown will impact DHS operations beyond immigration and border enforcement, which are largely supported by multi-year funding from the tax-and-spending bill that Congress approved last July. Other security-sensitive jobs will also be classified as essential, and those employees will be required to report to work without compensation.
Although the shutdown officially commences at midnight, DHS employees have been directed to report to work and initiate a “orderly shutdown” during their next scheduled shift — which for the majority will be Tuesday, following the observance of Presidents’ Day on Monday. The White House frequently employs comparable shutdown memos for political signaling, and Friday’s memo from White House budget director Russ Vought characterized the shutdown as a result of unreasonable demands from Democrats. Last week, Homeland Security spending was separated from a broader spending package as Congress engaged in discussions regarding reforms to immigration enforcement, prompted by protests and tragic shootings involving DHS officers in Minnesota.
Vought specifically referred to President Donald Trump’s decision to end that operation — known as “Operation Metro Surge” — as a concession to congressional Democrats. “The administration will continue to seek good-faith, bipartisan solutions to complete the appropriations process and avoid another damaging government shutdown,” Vought stated. Congress is currently on a week-long recess, which is necessary for the approval of DHS funding.
