Senator Blackburn Warns of National Safety Risks from DHS Funding Threats

Senator Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., warned Thursday that Democrats are jeopardizing public safety and disaster response by threatening to defund the Department of Homeland Security, arguing its resources support critical functions far beyond immigration enforcement. Speaking amid a major winter storm impacting Tennessee and other regions, Blackburn emphasized that DHS funds FEMA disaster aid, Coast Guard operations, and Transportation Security Administration activities.

“To even think about defunding DHS when we are in the middle of a storm that has impacted 200 million Americans, and FEMA funding comes out of DHS,” she said. “Why would they even think about that? It also funds the Coast Guard. There’s a storm this weekend that is coming up the Eastern Shore.”

Blackburn stated TSA workers would face funding cuts if defunding efforts proceed. She pushed back against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who recently called on President Donald Trump to remove Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, asserting immigration enforcement should not be undermined. “If they want to talk about ICE, that’s a separate issue, and move that aside,” she said.

The Tennessee senator highlighted constituent concerns about violent criminals living in communities, noting: “I have not talked to one single, solitary person who wants to have criminals living in their neighborhood.” She also described Tennessee’s ice storm damage, stating residents and businesses remain without power for weeks, with restoration expected to take days. “It is inexcusable,” she said, adding that eight fatalities were reported in her state from the storm.

Blackburn urged support for first responders and affected families, noting: “I know that many of our linemen, our first responders, and local elected officials are hard at work to see people through this devastation.”