The US Senate approves Department of Homeland Security budget but excludes ICE

Washington.- The United States Senate has approved early Friday a bill that allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to reopen, except for the immigration agency, after six weeks of tense negotiations and awaiting the vote in Congress for its final approval.

After two-thirty in the morning, and in a voice vote, the senators accepted the bill to fund the DHS, although the rule does not include the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and part of the Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The DHS remains closed since February 14 due to the Democrats’ refusal to fund precisely ICE, the agency that executes the immigration policy of US President Donald Trump, after the death of two US citizens by shots from federal agents in the protests against the massive immigration raids in Minneapolis. The Democrats demanded conditions to support the budget, including the need for judicial warrants for arrests or searches of homes and that officers not wear masks that would hinder their identification and that they carry body cameras. The agency’s closure had begun to cause problems at some US airports due to the lack of security agents to such an extent that Trump announced this Thursday that he will sign an executive order to guarantee immediate payment to airport security agents.

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Hours later, senators approved the bill by removing the immigration provisions that generated discord. “Senate Democrats were clear: no blank check for an ICE and Border Patrol that operate outside the law,” said Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and minority leader, after the measure passed. The final green light for the bill now depends on Congress, which is preparing to vote this Friday.