DHS spending fight hits a wall after tumultuous day: Five takeaways

The House and Senate both passed legislation on Friday to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and end one of the longest government shutdowns in the history of Congress — but not the same legislation.

For all the activity of the past 36 hours, the impasse over DHS is no closer to being broken and the parties appear as far apart as they were when the agency was first shut down on Feb. 14.

The sticking point, then and now, revolves around federal immigration enforcement in the wake of the fatal shootings of two American protestors in Minneapolis earlier in the year. 

The Senate bill, which was bipartisan and passed unanimously, reflected the Democrats’ demands to deny funding to enforcement operations while the parties haggle over policing reforms.

The House bill, crafted solely by Republicans, rejected that approach, funding the entire DHS — including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol — at current levels for eight weeks.

Here are five takeaways from a long day of events.

No end in sight for partial shutdown

The DHS stopgap measure is sure to be dead on arrival in the upper chamber, as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has already opposed the legislation.

With both parties at an impasse and both chambers depargint Washington for a two-week recess, the 42-day partial shutdown is now guaranteed to break the record for the longest one in U.S. history, which lasted for 43 days last year.

And Americans likely won’t be relieved anytime soon, as Republicans insist on funding ICE and Democrats demand tougher rules governing the agency’s conduct. 

The pressure is on for both parties, as thousands of DHS employees work without pay. But that pressure was reduced enormously on Friday when President Trump signed an executive order that shifted funds to pay Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents, who have been working without pay since the partial shutdown began on Feb. 14. 

During the impasse, many TSA employees have called in sick —........

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