By News Editor 
Senate Democrats are demanding new legal constraints on President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement operations in exchange for their votes to prevent a U.S. government shutdown set to begin Saturday. However, Reuters reports that talks are ongoing and shutdown may have been averted between Trump and opposition party leaders.
With just two days remaining before federal funding expires, Democratic leaders say they will not support a sweeping multi-agency spending bill unless it includes limits on the Department of Homeland Security’s law enforcement practices. Their proposals would restrict the use of force by immigration agents, require body cameras and judicial warrants, mandate coordination with local law enforcement, and prohibit agents from concealing their identities during operations.
The standoff marks the most significant leverage Democrats have had since losing control of Congress, and comes amid growing outrage over aggressive immigration raids and the fatal shooting of U.S. citizen Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis earlier this month.
“This is not border security. This is not law and order. This is chaos,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday.
Democrats are pushing to pass funding for all federal agencies except Homeland Security while negotiations continue over whether their demands should be written into law.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune has rejected changes to the spending package, which has already passed the House. He has argued that immigration enforcement should be addressed separately and said the White House is open to negotiations that would not require rewriting the bill.
“If there are things that they want that the White House could accommodate, short of modifying the legislation, that would eliminate a lot of uncertainty,” Thune told reporters.
Still, some Republicans, including Senators Lisa Murkowski and John Kennedy, have said they would consider removing Homeland Security funding from the broader package to allow talks to continue.
Any changes would require approval from the House, which is currently out of Washington. Speaker Mike Johnson has not indicated whether he would recall lawmakers ahead of schedule.
The administration has signaled concern over the political fallout from the Minneapolis killing. President Trump dispatched his border czar, Tom Homan, to the city in what officials described as an effort to ease tensions.
Senator Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, said the White House has engaged with Democrats but has yet to offer specific concessions.
If a shutdown begins Saturday, it would disrupt major federal departments, including Defense, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, Transportation, Education, State, and Treasury. Smaller agencies, such as the Small Business Administration, would also be affected.
The shutdown could delay the upcoming Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report, disrupt IRS operations at the start of tax filing season, halt SBA loans, and suspend payments to Pentagon contractors. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers deemed non-essential would be furloughed.
Immigration and border enforcement agencies, however, would continue operating. Because of provisions in Trump’s tax legislation, ICE and Border Patrol agents would remain on the job and continue receiving pay.
Democrats previously attempted to use a record 43-day shutdown last year to pressure Republicans into extending Affordable Care Act premium subsidies, an effort that ultimately failed.