‘That’s the Leverage’: Democrats Shrug Off FEMA and TSA Funding Concerns as Partial Shutdown Looms

As the House Homeland Security Committee heard testimonies from top Department of Homeland Security officials on Tuesday, Republicans are warning Democrats about the consequences of a partial government shutdown.

Congress is facing yet another potential partial government shutdown this Friday as funding for the Department of Homeland Security is set to expire. Democrats have made their demands clear, stating that they will not fund DHS without Immigration and Customs Enforcement reform.

ICE, however, received billions of dollars in funding from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. But shutting down DHS funding will harm other agencies funded through DHS.

If Democrats vote against funding for the department, Federal Emergency Management Agency and Transportation Security Administration operations could be at risk, Republicans argue.

“Another shutdown of DHS will disrupt important operations that include seizing illegal drugs, responding to natural disasters, combating child exploitation, arresting human traffickers, and preventing cyberattacks,” Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., told the Daily Signal.  

“Any sort of tragedy that happens in this country depends on the support from FEMA,” Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, told The Daily Signal outside the hearing room. “They’re here for an emergency.” 

When The Daily Signal asked about the impact a shutdown would have on FEMA and TSA specifically, Democrats did not seem concerned. 

Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., who serves on the committee alongside Guest and Pfluger, said he is actually willing to leverage FEMA funding for Republicans to meet their demands. “That’s the leverage that we have,” he told The Daily Signal.  

“I would like Democratic leaders to stay firm and get some concessions that are meaningful … We should use every leverage that we have,” Thanedar concluded.

Rep. Vince Fong, R-Calif., responded to this statement from Thanedar by stating, “Public safety should never be used as a bargaining chip.”

“The decision by Democrats to shut down and stop funding homeland security agencies is reckless and is putting American lives at risk,” Fong told The Daily Signal.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., responded by focusing on ICE funding. “The president was able to operate despite the last shutdown,” he told The Daily Signal outside the hearing room.

“Our requirements are pretty clear. Stop the roaming patrols. Take off the masks. Go to judges if you’re going to seek warrants, and we will support your operations if they’re not going after nonviolent individuals,” Swalwell said outside the hearing, referencing the list of demands Democrats put out last week.

Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., told The Daily Signal that “[Democrats] will continue to play reckless political games at the expense and suffering of the American people—defunding TSA, FEMA, and denying Coloradans in my district clean drinking water and other vital services to push their anti-law enforcement agenda.”

“Make no mistake—their theatrics aren’t about saving lives or protecting families; they’re about political leverage, even if it weakens our public safety and disaster response,” concluded Evans.  

Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., seemed more willing to negotiate. “We want to reach an agreement to avoid that and prevent [defunding FEMA and TSA],” he told The Daily Signal outside the hearing. “That’s why we need the Republicans to offer a substantive response to what Democrats have put on the table.”