Why it Matters

The House Homeland Security Committee's DHS shutdown hearing on March 25 put a stark number on the Department of Homeland Security budget shutdown impact: TSA workers are owed nearly $1 billion in missed paychecks, assault rates on officers have surged 500 percent, and the agency cannot certify new screeners in time for the FIFA World Cup. The Trump administration's position — captured in a quote cited at the hearing — is unambiguous: "No deals with Democrats."

The Big Picture

The DHS funding lapse began around February 14, after Senate Democrats blocked Republican appropriations over demands for ICE accountability following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents in Minneapolis. By the hearing date, DHS had been unfunded for 85 of the last 176 days — nearly half the fiscal year. The House passed a full-year DHS bill on January 22; the Senate has not. ICE, funded separately through last year's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, has continued deportation operations uninterrupted. Every other DHS component — TSA, FEMA, CISA, the Coast Guard — has been working without pay or furloughed. An earlier warning hearing before the House Appropriations Committee on February 11 featured many of the same witnesses describing exactly this scenario. Congress acted on none of it.

What they're saying:

  • Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY-2), serving as Chair: "Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats shut down the Department of Homeland Security 40 days ago. Their actions are reckless, dangerous, and unacceptable."

  • Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS-2), Ranking Member, firing back: "Republicans control every part of government and could have funded these agencies with Democratic support but chose not to."

  • Ha Nguyen McNeill, Senior Official Performing the Duties of the TSA Administrator, on the workforce: "Some are sleeping in their cars, selling their blood and plasma, and taking on second jobs to make ends meet."

The atmosphere was combative from the opening gavel. Thompson invoked a formal procedural demand — a minority day hearing request under House Rule 11 — before witnesses had said a word, forcing Garbarino to respond on the record. Garbarino later quipped that TSA should shut down Reagan National and Dulles airports to trap Senate Democrats in Washington until they pass a funding bill. McNeill did not respond.

Thompson's most pointed moment came when he cited Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, who reportedly told Fox News that when Senate GOP leadership brought a Democratic compromise to President Trump, Trump responded: "No deals with Democrats." Thompson's conclusion: "So to my Republican colleagues, spare us your crocodile tears today."

The witnesses brought direct operational credibility. McNeill has testified at three hearings this Congress on TSA operations and shutdown impacts. Vice Adm. Thomas Allan, Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, brought 35 years of service and a specific recovery calculus: for every one day of shutdown, the Coast Guard needs two and a half days to recover — meaning if the shutdown ended March 25, the agency would not catch up until July 3. Nick Andersen, Acting Director of CISA, was the most direct: "When the government shuts down, our adversaries do not." He confirmed that roughly 60 percent of CISA's workforce is furloughed, and that rulemaking for the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act has been paused — a long-term structural consequence that extends well beyond the shutdown's duration. Victoria Barton, a last-minute FEMA substitute for the originally scheduled Gregg Phillips, warned that the Disaster Relief Fund stands at $3.6 billion — and hurricane season is approaching.

When Thompson asked Barton directly whether she was aware of a reported Secretary's edict requiring personal approval of contracts under $100,000, she deflected entirely, pivoting to note that new DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin — sworn in the day before the hearing — had just been confirmed and FEMA stood ready for his guidance.

Political stakes

The hearing put every swing-district Republican in an uncomfortable position. Members like Rep. Gabe Evans (R-CO-8), Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA-7), and Rep. Brad Knott (R-NC-13) represent voters who are experiencing the airport delays firsthand. The homeland security funding Congress debate is no longer abstract — it is four-hour security lines at Hartsfield-Jackson and George Bush Intercontinental, documented by CNN and The Guardian. For Garbarino, whose Long Island district is defined by the September 11 attacks, the DHS appropriations hearing carries personal weight — and political risk if the security gaps persist into the summer. Thompson's decision to formally demand a minority day hearing signals that Democrats intend to use the committee as an ongoing accountability platform, not just a one-day event.

Thompson also raised concerns about the originally scheduled FEMA witness, Gregg Phillips, citing a reported quote in which Phillips said of President Biden: "I'd like to punch that [expletive] in the mouth right now. He deserves to die, and I hope he does." Phillips did not appear, citing an emergency. Garbarino did not directly address the allegations.

The Other Side

Republicans argued that the structural asymmetry of the shutdown — ICE funded, everyone else not — was a feature of Democratic obstruction, not Republican design. Garbarino noted that the Trump administration has ensured military and law enforcement personnel continue to be paid, citing the precedent set by the Pay Our Military Act from the 2013 shutdown. He also pointed to a Senate compromise forming in real time, saying the committee looked forward to reviewing any deal quickly. Democrats countered that they had offered standalone bills to fund TSA, FEMA, CISA, and the Coast Guard — all of which Republicans blocked.

What's Next

Senate Majority Leader John Thune has proposed funding 94 percent of DHS while withholding $5.5 billion for ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations — already funded through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer rejected the offer and countered with a package coupling DHS funding to new ICE guardrails. House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole has signaled the House could accept a partial-funding approach if the president backs it. Politico reported that Republicans are also exploring budget reconciliation to pass additional ICE funding alongside the SAVE Act. A congressional recess looms — if no deal is reached before members leave Washington, resolution could be delayed by another two weeks, pushing the standoff past the 60-day mark.

The Bottom Line

With nearly $1 billion in unpaid TSA wages, a depleting disaster relief fund, 60 percent of CISA furloughed, and the FIFA World Cup 79 days away, the DHS shutdown hearing documented a compounding national security crisis — but produced no funding deal, only sharper partisan lines.

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