Thune warns Senate's April recess could be canceled if DHS shutdown continues

Senate Majority Leader John Thune warned Thursday that the Senate will likely stay in Washington and not take its scheduled spring break at the end of next week if it does not pass legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security for the rest of the year.

DHS entered a shutdown last month after Senate Democrats failed to pass the House's DHS funding bill because of objections to immigration enforcement. Senators hoped to break the deadlock last week, but Democrats claimed Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection still need major reforms.

The Senate is currently expected to break for a two-week recess next Friday. Senators would normally return to their home districts to put in face time with their constituents, which is particularly valuable this year with the midterms in November.

“We need to get this resolved and it needs to get resolved, you know, by the end of next week,” Thune said. “I can’t see us taking a break if the [department’s] still shut down.”

The comment comes after the White House sent Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, to meet with a bipartisan group of senators on Capitol Hill Thursday, though attendees said the meeting ended without an agreement, according to Politico.

The standstill comes over objections to ICE funding and calls for the government to ban face masks for federal agents and tighten warrant requirements.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.