Congress passes $70B for DHS — funding ICE immigration enforcement for rest of Trump’s term

ICE police officer wearing uniform and tactical vest with crossed arms

WASHINGTON — Congress has finally passed a $70 billion funding bill for federal immigration enforcement on Tuesday, putting to rest a four-month fight over the fate of President Trump’s mass deportations agenda. House Republicans, in a party-line vote of 214-212, approved the spending for the Department of Homeland Security after the Senate had passed the measure last Friday. Democrats were universally opposed and joined in that opposition by Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-Calif.), who recently left the GOP.

“With today’s vote, House and Senate Republicans have officially ended the third Democrat government shutdown of this Congress,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) in a statement. “And here’s the end result of Democrats’ record-setting obstruction: CBP and ICE will now be funded for the remainder of President Trump’s term and Democrats will have no ability to defund these agencies in the 119th or 120th Congresses.” DHS had been unfunded mostly from mid-February to April, with some immigration enforcement-focused agencies still requiring funding after that.

The measure now moves to Trump’s desk for his signature. Republicans had quibbled over including provisions for $1 billion for beefed up security at Trump’s White House ballroom, as well as a potential prohibition against using any funds for a $1.776 billion judgment fund to compensate perceived victims of “weaponized” prosecutions. Neither item was tucked into the bill after weeks of deliberations — despite some GOP senators offering amendments to do away with the fund — and the legislation was passed by a simple majority in both chambers through a process known as budget reconciliation. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) was the only Republican to oppose it.

Democrats in the upper chamber had delayed passage for three months before that, refusing to back an earlier spending measure in January in protest of federal immigration officers’ fatal shootings of two Americans in Minneapolis. The Secure America Act provides more than $9.5 billion in funding to help hire and pay Border Patrol agents; nearly $3.5 billion for new border surveillance technologies and efforts to combat fentanyl or other drug trafficking; and almost $7.5 billion for retaining more Homeland Security Investigations agents. The spending allows both Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as Customs and Border

Protection to be fully funded through 2029, with an extra $2.5 billion for other Department of Homeland Security programs. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Democrats had opposed the DHS funding after the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both 37, who were fatally shot while protesting a surge of federal officers to the Twin Cities for deportations. The Democrats had pressed for universal body cameras — a concession that border czar Tom Homan said was already being implemented — as well as for ICE and CBP officers to go maskless and be forced to obtain judicial warrants for arrests

Source: Congress passes $70B for DHS — funding ICE immigration enforcement for rest of Trump’s term

For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.
1 Timothy 2:5

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House passes pro-union bill after 20 Republicans defy party, in latest move to bypass GOP leadership

Washington — House Democrats, with the help of several Republicans, bypassed GOP leadership on Tuesday to force a successful vote on legislation that would accelerate negotiations on newly-formed unions’ first collective bargaining agreements.  The legislation, titled the Faster Labor Contracts Act, was introduced in September by Democratic Rep. Donald Norcross of New Jersey. It passed in a 230 to 193 vote, with 20 Republicans voting in favor.  In late April, Norcross launched a discharge petition, seeking to bring the bill to the floor.

The procedural maneuver allows members to circumvent leadership and force a floor vote on legislation if they secure a majority support — 218 signatures. The petition hit the threshold within a month, with seven Republicans signing on.  Norcross’ discharge petition is the seventh this session to hit the threshold, a sign of discontent with GOP leadership.  The measure would amend the National Labor Relations Act and require employers to begin contract negotiations with newly-certified unions within 10 days of receiving a written request. It also sets a timeline for mediation and lays out next steps if no agreement is reached after 90 days. 

“Right now, employers can delay negotiations on first contracts for years,” Norcross said in a statement in April, adding that his bill “will force employers to act in good faith and come to the negotiating table quickly.”  During debate on the bill, GOP Rep. Tim Walberg of Michigan argued the measure would fast-track “government intrusion into private workplaces” and erode “workers’ rights faster than we have ever seen before.”  “It is the latest attempt to put workers under the thumb of the federal bureaucrats,” Walberg said, referring to the arbitration process laid out in the bill. 

Source: House passes pro-union bill after 20 Republicans defy party, in latest move to bypass GOP leadership – CBS News

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8

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Republicans Investigate Foreign Influence Ties To American Universities

daffodil international university building in dhaka

A group of congressional Republicans are investigating foreign entities aligned with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) allegedly attempting to influence and infiltrate American universities, the Daily Caller exclusively learned. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy and some GOP colleagues are looking into nine universities over alleged foreign ties to the CCP, according to a series of letters obtained exclusively by the Caller. Cassidy is joined by Republican Indiana Sen. Jim Banks and Republican Michigan Reps. Tim Walberg and John Moolenaar.

Source: EXCLUSIVE: Republicans Investigate Foreign Influence Ties To American Universities | The Daily Caller

And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7

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1.3 million Ram trucks recalled over improperly installed seat belt anchors

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Arson arrest in one of the Spokane area wildfires that have left some residents with nothing – CBS News

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Stockton church hosts fundraiser to reopen local school

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Trump announces Gaza breakthrough but uncertainty remains

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Isolated storms could impact metro Atlanta counties, forecasters say

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