Congress Ends Record-Breaking Homeland Security Shutdown After Trump Signs Funding Bill

Congress ended a record-breaking Department of Homeland Security shutdown after the House approved a Senate-passed funding bill, with President Trump quickly signing it to end a partial shutdown that started 76 days ago.

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El Cronista

The Fiscal Times says the House approved the bill by unanimous consent to fund much of DHS and that it would fund the Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Transportation Security Administration and Secret Service through September 30.

El Cronista

The same article reports that DHS had been using alternative funding to pay its workers, but warned those other sources would be tapped out at the end of the month, leaving it unable to cover employee paychecks.

It also notes that the White House urged House lawmakers to fund the department before they leave for a planned recess next week.

The Fiscal Times adds that more than 1,100 TSA agents have quit since the shutdown began, and that the prospect of having workers go without pay again raised fears that airports could be plagued by callouts and lengthy delays.

House Democrats framed the episode as a leadership failure, with Rep. Rosa DeLauro saying, "This has gone on far too long. This is no way to govern, this is no way to run a legislative body, it is a failure of leadership."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, meanwhile, told reporters, "Despite unrelenting predictions from many of you today in the press that we would fail this week, we did exactly the opposite."

As the DHS shutdown ended for non-immigration agencies, the Global Entry program resumed operations after being suspended during the partial shutdown.

El País reports that Global Entry “ha vuelto a operar este miércoles por la mañana” and that the DHS said the service restarted on “este 11 de marzo a las 5.00 a.m. hora del este.”

EL PAÍS

The Spanish-language outlet says the program allows “viajeros previamente autorizados y considerados de bajo riesgo” to accelerate entry using “kioscos automatizados” at airport immigration controls.

El País quotes a DHS spokesperson speaking to CNN, saying, “Mientras el DHS evalúa continuamente las medidas que puede tomar ante el cierre continuado del departamento por parte de los demócratas, el DHS reactivará Global Entry el 11 de marzo a las 5:00 a. m. ET.”

The article also describes how the suspension had been announced at the end of February after DHS financing expired on “el 14 de ese mes” due to lack of agreement in Congress.

El País further reports that the U.S. Travel Association had urged the government to restore the program, and it quotes the group’s statement that “Global Entry es mucho más que una comodidad, está en primera línea de la seguridad nacional.”

Even after reopening, the outlet warns that Global Entry’s restart would not necessarily reduce TSA security lines, noting that airports across the country recorded “esperas de varias horas” due to staff shortages tied to the shutdown.

While the House funding bill ended the shutdown for non-immigration DHS agencies, the Senate moved to advance legislation aimed at funding ICE and CBP and preventing similar shutdowns for the rest of the four-year term.

“The legislation seeks to end the partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which this Friday reaches 70 days, and to prevent similar situations for the rest of the four-year term”

Noticias de Puerto Rico hoy

Noticias de Puerto Rico hoy reports that the measure seeks to end the partial shutdown of DHS, which “este viernes alcanza 70 días,” and to prevent similar situations for the rest of the four-year term.

The outlet says the legislation would authorize funding of up to “$140 billion,” while the Republican plan, for the moment, is to approve about “$70 billion” to overcome Democrats’ objections to funding those immigration agencies without reforms to how they operate after incidents in which agents killed U.S. citizens.

It adds that the Senate resolution was approved “50-48,” with two Republicans voting against it, “Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) y Rand Paul (Kentucky),” and that Charles Grassley and Mark Warner were absent for the vote.

Because it is a budget reconciliation bill, the outlet says Republicans can pass by majority in the Senate, bypassing the filibuster rule that requires “al menos 60 votos.”

The article reports that President Donald Trump asked Republican leaders to approve funding for ICE and CBP for the entire four-year term, and it lists demands Democrats are pushing, including requiring agents to wear masks, body cameras for all, and court orders to conduct raids.

It quotes Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham saying, “I'm saddened that we have to do this, but they left us with no other option,” and it quotes Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer saying, “they don't care about families suffering from the high cost of childcare, food, gasoline, or electricity, but about directing $140 billion to corrupt agencies.”

UnidosUS policy and advocacy leader Eric Rodríguez is quoted saying, “This is another blank check for ICE and CBP,” and he adds that the Senate budget resolution is “the first step toward directing tens of billions of dollars more to enforcing immigration laws without accountability or safeguards.”

Even as the funding bill moved forward, Politico described a “hangover” from the DHS shutdown that would linger for missions including disaster response and airport security screening.

Politico says the “record-breaking Department of Homeland Security shutdown might be over — but the damage is already done,” and it frames the disruption as happening “just weeks before the summer travel season begins.”

Telemundo Washington DC

The outlet reports that the “76-day shutdown added pressure” and “stalling key projects and forcing some staff to work without pay for part of it,” while some TSA employees “simply quit.”

It quotes a DHS staffer who said the shutdown left officials “stuck in the sand,” and another person close to the administration who said DHS will now be able to use the funding as a “springboard and start moving forward.”

Politico also quotes Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who said the shutdown hurt morale and pointed to Coast Guard impacts, including that delayed licensing had affected “some 18,000 commercial and private boats.”

Mullin is quoted saying, “There will be ripple effects for months,” and “It will take us roughly six months to get caught up just from the backlog.”

The article adds that U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement that “there are “no real winners in a shutdown,”” and that Congress using shutdowns to “advance political goals” carries “real consequences for our national security and the traveling public.”

Freeman is also quoted saying, “Just weeks until the World Cup, our preparedness has taken a step backward,” and “We emerge from this disruption weaker, not stronger.”

Beyond DHS funding, Telemundo Washington DC described how the shutdown’s staffing effects and the war in Iran were combining to make flying “more expensive and less convenient” for travelers across the United States.

“Major airlines and millions of travelers across the United States are facing this spring an unusual convergence of challenges that, taken together, are making flying both more expensive and less convenient”

Telemundo Washington DC

The outlet says the partial shutdown caused “a shortage of staff at security checkpoints at national airports,” and it ties that to the busiest spring break week of the year.

El Cronista

Telemundo reports that “More than 300 TSA workers have resigned since the partial government shutdown began on February 14,” and it says the number of employees reporting sick “has more than doubled at several major airports,” confirmed by a senior TSA official.

It adds that travelers are experiencing security lines “that are several hours long at airports across the country,” and that social media is flooded with videos of TSA screening lines spanning entire terminals.

On the cost side, Telemundo says the war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz off the Iranian coast pushed global oil prices higher and sparked a sharp rise in jet fuel costs, with “the spot price of a gallon of jet fuel” standing at “3.99 dollars” on Friday.

The outlet reports that a Boeing 747 burns “about 60 gallons of fuel per minute” and “roughly 10,000 gallons on a three-hour flight,” and it quotes Jan Brueckner saying, “Therefore, consumers will notice the higher fuel costs driven by the Iran war not only when refueling their cars but also in the price of the plane tickets they buy.”

Telemundo also reports that some airlines are raising ticket prices and applying fuel surcharges, including Cathay Pacific Airways doubling its fuel surcharge from “72.90 dollars” to “149.20 dollars” starting late this week, and it lists other airlines implementing changes “according to Reuters.”

It concludes by noting that “Jet fuel costs are the single largest expense for most major airlines, accounting for about 30 percent of total expenses,” citing Deutsche Bank analysts, and it quotes Michael Linenberg warning that airlines could be forced to ground aircraft or weak carriers could suspend operations.