By David Morgan, Richard Cowan and Nolan D. McCaskill
WASHINGTON, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Odds of a partial U.S. government shutdown rose on Friday after new barriers emerged in the Senate to a deal that would ensure funding for agency operations would not be interrupted.
The deal, announced by Senate Democrats and President Donald Trump, would allow Congress to pass a spending bill that covers a wide swath of government operations, from the military to health programs, while they negotiate new limits on Trump’s immigration crackdown.
But action stalled in the Senate on Thursday night as some lawmakers objected to the agreement.
The Senate was due to return at 11 a.m. Eastern time (1600 GMT), and funding expires at midnight.
Even if the Senate passes the deal, it would also have to win approval from the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, which is out of session this week. House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Thursday it would be difficult to get lawmakers back to Washington to vote before the midnight deadline.
The deal would separate funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from the broader funding package, ensuring that the debate over immigration enforcement would not impact agencies like the Pentagon and the Department of Labor.
Senate Democrats, angered by the shooting of a second U.S. citizen by immigration agents in Minneapolis last weekend, had threatened to hold up the funding package in an effort to force Trump to rein in DHS, which oversees federal immigration enforcement.
Democrats are demanding new restrictions on federal immigration agents, including an end to roving patrols, a ban on face masks and a requirement to wear body cameras.
DHS funding would be extended for two weeks, giving negotiators time to reach an agreement on immigration tactics.
The shooting death of nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents on Saturday spurred widespread public outrage, prompting the Trump administration to de-escalate operations in the region. Pretti’s death was the second this month of a U.S. citizen with no criminal record involving immigration law enforcement agents.
(Reporting by David Morgan, Richard Cowan and Nolan D. McCaskill; editing by Andy Sullivan, KIrsten Donovan)
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