Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York speaks about the Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, deadline to release the Epstein files during a Senate Democratic press conference on Capitol Hill.
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Outrage over the fatal shooting of Alex Preti by a federal immigration agent in Minnesota, the second such incident this month, raised the possibility Sunday that a partial U.S. government shutdown could occur by the end of this week.
A growing chorus of Democratic senators are warning that they won’t vote for the massive $1.2 trillion package to fund federal government operations if it includes spending for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees immigration enforcement.
On Sunday, a person familiar with Senate Republican leadership’s thinking told CNBC that they have no intention of removing the DHS funding portion despite the warnings.
“Government funding is set to expire this weekend, and Republicans are determined not to cause another government shutdown,” the official said.
“We will move forward as planned and we hope that Democrats can find a path forward and join us,” they said.
The House approved the funding package Thursday.
If the Senate does not approve the deal by Friday, the federal government will begin a partial shutdown.
The funding package needs 60 votes to overcome the filibuster and pass the Senate.
Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, and the bill would need support from Democrats to pass.
On Saturday morning, Preti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse from the United States, was shot in Minneapolis, igniting already simmering concerns among Congressional Democrats about DHS funding.
Democrats were already outraged by the Jan. 7 shooting death of Minneapolis woman Renee Good by ICE agents in the city.
“Senate Democrats will not allow the current DHS funding bill to move forward,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement Sunday.
“Senate Republicans saw the same horrifying footage that all Americans saw, of ICE’s blatant abuse of Americans in Minnesota,” Schumer said.
“In the wake of the horrific murders of Renee Good and Alex Preti on the streets of Minneapolis, Republicans must join with Democrats to overhaul ICE and CBP to protect the public,” he said. “People should be safe from abuse by their own government.”
“I cannot vote for a bill that includes funding for ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) under these circumstances,” Maine Sen. Angus King said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
“If we take DHS on its own, have some honest negotiations, put some guardrails around what’s going on, some accountability, this problem will go away,” said King, one of two independents caucusing with Democrats.
“There’s no need to close,” he said.
King played a key role in ending last year’s 43-day shutdown. During the last government shutdown, he repeatedly voted to open the government while his Democratic colleagues advocated for extending Obamacare subsidies.
House members who went into recess as scheduled after passing the bill must return by the recess deadline to approve any changes the Senate makes. It’s unclear whether Republicans, who control the House, can or will do so.
Some Democratic lawmakers have already opposed the funding measure, which includes spending for DHS as well as the departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Education, State and Treasury.
“No, I will not vote for this funding,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Our Republican colleagues must stand up and stop this.”
Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, also said she would oppose the plan if it included DHS funding.
Murray warned early last week that “any suggestion that a shutdown at this moment might curb the regime’s lawlessness is not rooted in reality.”
“Federal agents can kill people in broad daylight and face no consequences,” Murray said on Saturday.
“I do not support the DHS bill as it stands. It needs to be separated from the larger funding package in the Senate, and Republicans must work with us to do that,” she said.
It’s unclear whether the Senate could split the DHS portion from the rest of the funding bill to minimize a partial shutdown.
The House passed the DHS bill separately from the rest of the bill, but they will all be combined into one bill and sent to the Senate, meaning the Republican majority would have to support splitting the bill.
There’s still a chance that enough Democrats can work with Republicans to pass a funding bill and avert a government shutdown. Many of the other institutions included in the package are important to Democrats.
DHS could also take advantage of hundreds of billions of dollars that Congressional Republicans injected into the agency as part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” law passed last summer, which could ease hurdles during the shutdown.
However, it is far from a guaranteed result. Several Democratic lawmakers who worked with Republicans last year to end a record 43-day government shutdown have warned they will oppose the bill if it includes funding for DHS.
“I do not support the current Homeland Security funding bill,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), one of the Democrats who joined Republicans to end the last government shutdown.
“While we continue to fight for a Department of Homeland Security that respects Americans’ constitutional rights and preserves federal law enforcement’s critical role in keeping us safe, let’s pass the remaining bipartisan legislation and fund our critical agencies.”
Further complicating matters is the massive snowstorm that hit Washington, D.C., and large swathes of the United States. The Senate canceled Monday’s vote because of the storm, shortening its already tight schedule to avoid a shutdown.
— CNBC’s Emily Wilkins contributed to this article.
