Bipartisan DHS Reopening Bill: Masks, Warrants, and Penalties

0:00On March 26, a bipartisan team of House lawmakers led by Republican Brian Fitzpatrick from Pennsylvania and Democrat Tom Suazi from New York is putting the final touches on a bill to reopen the Department of Homeland Security. The department has been closed for weeks now and their plan ties fresh funding to stricter rules for immigration enforcement officers. They aim to drop the legislation this Friday through the problem solvers caucus. The bill is crafted to win over both parties. Democrats get extras like a face mass ban for officers and mandatory warrants before arrests. Going beyond some earlier Senate ideas, Republicans like the boosted criminal penalties for doxing federal agents, which has been a big worry for them. Meanwhile, Senate leaders have been swapping failed proposals all week to end the shutdown. On Thursday, the problem solvers group met in the Capitol Visitor Center basement with Senate appropriations chair Susan Collins for Maine. They stress keeping reforms narrow just for ICE's enforcement and removal unit, not broader

1:03agencies like Customs and Border Protection. Progressive Democrats are digging in their heels demanding full-scale changes before any funding for ICE or Border Patrol pointing to past incidents in cities like Minneapolis. From the other side, former Trump border chief Tom Homan flat out rejected the mass ban saying it puts officers in danger. Whether this compromise can break the deadlock and restart DHS operations is still up in the air, but it's the most promising bipartisan push so far.