DHS on Brink: Vought Warns of Shutdown Consequences

0:00On April 16th, the White House Budget Director Russell Vott just told a Senate panel that the Department of Homeland Security is falling apart after, more than two months without key funding. This partial shutdown kicked off on February 14th because Democrats blocked money over disagreements with the Trump team's immigration plans. Vott said he and the secretary are scrambling just to cover paychecks and stop folks from walking out. Some agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection have partial funding from that big bill they call the one big, beautiful bill act. But others are hurting bad, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Transportation Security Administration, Coast Guard, Secret Service, and the Cybersecurity Agency. Workers are already quitting left and right, and Vott warned it puts the whole country at risk from stopping terror attacks like 9-11-2. Handling natural disasters, he said they're not ready for the next big storm because salaries are coming out of temporary pots that won't last.

1:02Earlier this week on March 27th, the Senate passed the bill to fund most of DHS except those two border agencies as a nod to Democrats. But it's stuck in the house right now. Republicans are pushing a fast-track reconciliation plan to get full funding done by June. By passing any Senate roadblocks, so DHS doesn't completely, crumble, and leave us exposed. Stay informed with US News today, AI-powered updates. I'm Corey with The Story.