House Stalls on Homeland Security Funding

Partisan gridlock continues as Senate tries to reopen agency amid record shutdown.

Apr. 2, 2026 at 4:17pm

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The Senate made a new attempt to reopen the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday, but House Republicans refused to approve the Senate's plan, prolonging the record-setting agency shutdown even after the Senate's bipartisan effort.

Why it matters

The ongoing funding impasse has left the Department of Homeland Security, a critical federal agency responsible for national security and disaster response, without full operational capacity at a time of heightened global tensions.

The details

The Senate's latest proposal aimed to temporarily fund the Department of Homeland Security and end the shutdown, but House Republicans declined to take up the measure, continuing the partisan gridlock that has paralyzed the agency for weeks.

  • The Senate moved early Thursday to try again to reopen the Department of Homeland Security.

The players

U.S. Senate

The upper chamber of the United States Congress that attempted to pass a funding measure to reopen the Department of Homeland Security.

U.S. House of Representatives

The lower chamber of the United States Congress that declined to take up the Senate's proposal, prolonging the agency shutdown.

President Trump

The President of the United States, whose approval was required for the Senate's plan to reopen the Department of Homeland Security.

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What’s next

The House and Senate will need to reach a compromise on funding the Department of Homeland Security in order to end the ongoing shutdown.

The takeaway

The continued partisan gridlock in Congress has left a critical federal agency responsible for national security and disaster response without full operational capacity, raising concerns about the government's ability to effectively respond to emerging threats and crises.