Democrats Trigger Third Partial Government Shutdown After Walking Away from Homeland Security Funding

By Ken Buck
Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Late last week, lawmakers on the left threw the federal government into yet another partial shutdown—the third in the past six months—after they walked away from negotiations to fund the Department of Homeland Security. This cycle of political brinkmanship, in which Democrats have shown no reservations about driving off the cliff, would be comical if it weren’t so dangerous.

Federal shutdowns have become the left’s new bargaining chip. Rather than debating policy through appropriate channels, Democrats threaten to close the government every time they don’t get their way. They are acting like a playground bully who steals the ball and stops the game because it isn’t going their direction.

The latest closure comes after Republicans rightly rejected U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s and U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ 10-point ultimatum to effectively stop Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

This debacle perfectly embodies Democrats’ contorted agenda: they want to hang a welcome sign on our borders and offer sanctuary to illegal immigrants, with utter disregard for the massive costs amnesty imposes on our economy and hardworking taxpayers. Since they didn’t get their way, they are happy to shut down the agency in charge—effectively securing a backdoor workaround to maintain their open-border policies at least temporarily.

Never mind that their position directly contradicts what Americans want. A recent survey found that nearly three-quarters of voters believe criminal illegal immigrants should be deported, and more than two-thirds want state and local officials to cooperate with federal authorities.

The brave men and women who enforce our immigration laws put their lives on the line to keep our communities safe. But rather than stand with them, Democrats have shown they are more interested in stoking fears and inciting violence.

When they can’t change the laws, Democrats simply attack law enforcement agents. The left’s reckless rhetoric—including comparing ICE to the Gestapo, calling agents “criminals,” and insisting this administration is an “authoritarian regime”—has emboldened violent attacks against those serving our country in uniform.

Words matter. And the left’s hate speech has and continues to divide our country, often with tragic results.

How quickly, too, Democrats have abandoned their own principles. Only a decade ago, the Obama administration oversaw the largest deportation program in history, removing nearly three million illegal immigrants—one of its few laudable achievements.

“Our immigration system is broken—and everybody knows it,” former President Barack Obama said. “Today, we have more agents and technology deployed to secure our southern border than at any time in history.”

At least he understood that flooding borders with illegal immigrants undermines economic vitality. Trump promised to secure our borders, and his administration has delivered results: home prices have fallen in metro areas with large illegal populations; wages are rising in blue-collar industries; and violent crime rates have dropped significantly.

Democrats simply do not have an answer. Illegal immigration helps entrench their radical agenda, but it is under attack from an administration that puts everyday citizens—not the liberal elite—first.

It’s another Hail Mary attempt to prop up the left’s failing immigration policies.