The Senate broke a logjam in the wee hours of Friday morning to pass a funding bill by voice vote that would effectively end a partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.
After a late night of negotiations, the Senate agreed to a modified version of a bill that would fund all of the department with the exception of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and most of Customs and Border Protection — the two agencies that have been at the center of a partisan standoff over immigration enforcement practices.
“It’s not the way to fund the department,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said after the vote. “But we are out of time for the critical responsibilities and tens of thousands of workers currently going without pay.”
