Sen. Chuck Schumer, the chamber’s top Democrat, said Monday that the ongoing Department of Homeland Security funding negotiations with the White House and Republicans have been “constructive,” but emphasized that “there\u2019s considerably more work to be done.”<\/p>\n
“We’re ready to meet with the White House today to keep talking,” Schumer said after talks occurred all weekend.\u00a0“In fact, we were going to meet this morning with [Border Czar] Tom Homan, but apparently the White House pulled that meeting because of Donald Trump’s temper tantrum.”<\/p>\n
![\"Easter\"](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/6c80bfc2-c5ea-4440-9fff-c0135a8d62d7\/chuck-schumer-2-gty-gmh-260317_1773774912137_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"Easter\\"")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks to the press after the weekly policy luncheon in Washington, March 16, 2026.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Roberto Schmidt\/AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Schumer said Trump is trying to “sabotage negotiations” as lawmakers work to hammer out a deal to end the DHS partial shutdown, as lines grow at airports across the country and tens of thousands of workers, including Transportation Security Administration officers, go without pay.<\/p>\n Schumer said Trump \u201cis the one standing in the way\u201d of paying TSA workers after he directed Republicans over the weekend to not make a deal with Democrats on DHS funding without also passing his voting and gender-affirming care legislation, the SAVE America Act<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n “The SAVE Act does not have the votes to pass this chamber, and Democrats will fight it every step of the way,” Schumer said on the Senate floor Monday. “The SAVE Act has nothing to do with DHS Homeland Security. It has nothing to do with TSA workers or making sure ICE follows the same rules as every other federal law enforcement agency in the country.”<\/p>\n During a crime-focused roundtable in Memphis on Monday, Trump said he is “suggesting strongly to the Republican Party” to avoid making “any deal on anything.”<\/p>\n President Donald Trump participates in a roundtable discussion on public safety at a Tennessee Air National Guard Base, March 23, 2026, in Memphis, Tenn.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Kevin Lamarque\/Reuters<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n “Do not settle with Democrats and let them out of this hole that they buried themselves in. You have to take the votes in the Senate to approve. You need votes to approve,” Trump said, also repeating his calls for the Senate to abolish their 60-vote filibuster to pass the legislation with a simple majority.<\/p>\n Trump encouraged Republicans to stay in town for the upcoming recess to hammer out a deal: “Don’t worry about Easter, going home.”<\/p>\n Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Monday that the negotiations are a very fluid situation, which will hopefully become more clear in the next two days.<\/p>\n Senate Majority Leader John Thune smiles speaks to reporters following a Republican policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol Building on March 17, 2026 in Washington.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Andrew Harnik\/Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Monday’s developments come after Trump on Sunday rejected a\u00a0potential off-ramp\u00a0to the DHS shutdown after conversations between the White House and Senate Republican leaders, according to multiple sources who spoke with ABC News.<\/p>\n Trump on Sunday shot down funding every agency inside the department — except Immigration and Custom Enforcement, according to the sources.<\/p>\n Senate Republicans expressed concern the approach could give Democrats the upper hand in negotiations and have an impact on critical roles that ICE plays in addition to immigration enforcement, like the work done by Homeland Security Investigations<\/a>.<\/p>\n A source familiar with the conversation told ABC News that White House aides had briefed Trump on the proposed DHS off-ramp before a phone call between Thune and the president on Sunday, hoping that the pitch could break the impasse that has stretched on for 38 days so far.<\/p>\n Senate Democrats — who are blocking DHS funding and demanding ICE reforms — have repeatedly tried and failed to pass legislation<\/a> to fund agencies inside the department, excluding immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n Democrats’ efforts have been blocked by Republican leadership who have publicly argued everything should be funded at once — despite debating a different plan behind closed doors, according to sources.<\/p>\n![\"Kevin\"](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/0ac2090b-36cc-4a6b-a096-168afe0efafa\/donald-trump-11-rt-gmh-260323_1774286661601_hpMain_4x3.jpg?w=375 "\\"Kevin\\"")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>![\"Majority](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/12e33c40-6ac0-4662-8847-3b25d878b761\/john-thune-2-gty-gmh-260317_1773777330937_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"Majority")
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