“Democrats picked the wrong fight,” Blackburn says as she warns DHS shutdown is “dangerous” for national security
Sen. Marsha Blackburn accused Democrats of “shutting down” the Department of Homeland Security at a moment of heightened global tension, as a partial, single-agency shutdown at DHS entered a new week with no clear path to reopening the department.
“The Democrats are playing a dangerous game by shutting down DHS at a time when protecting our national security is absolutely imperative,” the Tennessee Republican wrote in a post that included a clip from Fox Business. Blackburn urged Democrats to “reverse course” and approve funding.
DHS has been operating under a funding lapse since the evening of Feb. 13, a rare shutdown that has largely spared much of the federal government while leaving parts of the homeland security apparatus working without pay or operating with curtailed services.
The standoff is rooted in a broader fight over immigration enforcement policy. Democrats have argued they will not support full-year DHS funding without changes to Immigration and Customs Enforcement practices and oversight, while Republicans accuse Democrats of holding national security agencies hostage over political demands.
What makes the shutdown unusual is that some of DHS’s largest enforcement arms — ICE and Customs and Border Protection — have access to large sums of previously enacted funding and can continue many operations, even as other DHS components feel the effects. A Senate Appropriations Committee summary noted that failure to pass annual DHS appropriations would not shut down ICE or CBP because of separate funding provided in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” but it would leave agencies such as FEMA, TSA, CISA and the Coast Guard shuttered or working without pay.
The consequences are increasingly visible for both employees and services. Government Executive reported DHS workers have begun missing paychecks as the shutdown moved into a third week, with DHS officials warning lawmakers the lapse would damage morale and disrupt planning. The report said the Coast Guard has curtailed training and grounded some aircraft, TSA leaders have warned of airport delays, FEMA has struggled with payments tied to long-term recovery efforts, and the Secret Service has paused internal reforms.
Blackburn and other Republicans have argued the timing raises added security concerns as the U.S. faces international threats, including the widening conflict involving Iran. Tennessee Republicans, in comments reported by Fox 17, said they worry a funding lapse could disrupt national security operations, while a retired FBI supervisory special agent told the station that key counterterrorism work continues through broader federal and joint task force networks even during the lapse.
Negotiations have continued in fits and starts, with House Republican leaders signaling they plan another vote on DHS funding as pressure builds to find a way out of the stalemate.
