Sen. Tim Scott says Republicans may use reconciliation after DHS funding talks stall
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Sign Up Free
Summary
Sen. Tim Scott criticized Democratic opposition to test votes on DHS funding as the government shutdown continued, said some DHS workers faced pay issues, and said Republicans could pursue a reconciliation vehicle to fund Homeland Security and other priorities, including a Pentagon supplemental.
Sen. Tim Scott told an interviewer that Republicans remained frustrated with stalled negotiations to reopen the Department of Homeland Security and suggested they could pursue funding through reconciliation if Democrats would not cooperate.
The reporter noted that House Budget Committee Chair Jody Arrington and Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham were in talks about a second reconciliation bill that could include a roughly $200,000,000,000 supplemental for the Pentagon tied to the Iran conflict, additional immigration enforcement funding and items from the Save America Act.
Scott described recent negotiations as tense and criticized Democratic senators who, he said, have not done "the very job that they took an oath to do" on national security. He cited operational disruptions at airports and said some TSA workers had not been paid consistently for six months. "It is so frustrating to watch senators, Democrats like John Ossoff refuse to do the very job that they took an oath to do, keep America safe," Scott said. He added that Republicans were prepared to move without Democrats if necessary: "How do you deal with a person who doesn't wanna make a deal? You do it without them."
The senator also raised concerns about protections for certain DHS personnel, saying that removing some safeguards (framed in the interview as removing masks for ICE agents) could expose employees and their families to doxxing-related risks. Those operational claims and characterizations were offered as the senator's assessment of the shutdown's effects and political dynamics.
Next steps: budget chairs' talks and possible reconciliation maneuvers were described as ongoing; no final legislation was presented during the interview.