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WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – Senate Republicans on Thursday abruptly delayed plans to vote on a massive budget reconciliation package tied to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda, pushing action on the bill until after the Memorial Day recess.
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The proposal would provide roughly $72 billion for ICE and Border Patrol operations over the next three years. Republicans had planned to move the bill through the reconciliation process, allowing it to pass the Senate with a simple majority instead of the usual 60-vote threshold.
But the package faced growing resistance from both Democrats and some Republicans over several controversial provisions.
One major sticking point involved a nearly $1.8 billion Justice Department “anti-weaponization” fund tied to a settlement involving President Trump and the IRS. Democrats criticized the fund as lacking oversight, while some Republicans also raised concerns and pushed for restrictions on how the money could be distributed.
Another flashpoint was $1 billion in proposed funding for White House security upgrades connected to Trump’s planned ballroom project. Senate parliamentarians had already ruled parts of that funding violated reconciliation rules, and GOP leaders were expected to remove at least some of the provision.
On Capitol Hill Thursday, Democratic leaders blasted the broader package.
“We believe that taxpayer dollars in this country should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, not subsidize corruption,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused Republicans of helping fund “his multi-billion-dollar MAGA slush fund.”
“The Republican bill has zero dollars to lower Americans costs. Zero,” Schumer said. “Nothing to address health care to cut gas prices. Not a word on housing, utilities, groceries.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune acknowledged the process had become more complicated than expected, telling reporters the bill “got a little bit more complicated this week.”
The delay is also a setback for Trump, who had publicly demanded the legislation reach his desk by June 1. Both chambers of Congress must still approve identical versions of the bill before it can be signed into law.
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