How Did Any Democrats Vote To Fund DHS Nazis? Just Asking For Liam, Age Five.
And yeah, we can stay mad at Hakeem Jeffries for not whipping the vote, too.
As expected, the House of Representatives narrowly voted yesterday to approve a bill funding the Department of Homeland Security for the rest of fiscal 2026, on a 220-207 vote. Seven Democrats joined all the Republicans but one in supporting the bill, despite a recommendation — but not an actual effort to whip the vote — from Democratic leadership to vote against the bill.
Here, for future reference/primary voting/rotten vegetable distribution, are those seven Democrats: Reps. Henry Cuellar (Texas), Don Davis (North Carolina), Laura Gillen (New York), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Washington), Jared Golden (Maine), Vicente Gonzalez (Texas), and Tom Suozzi (New York).
Also, cheers to Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Connecticut) who voted against the DHS funding bill even though she helped negotiate the bipartisan DHS bill, with a few very limited restrictions on ICE, like fewer prison beds, funding for body cameras, and for a bit more training of the goon squads. But nothing to prevent abuses by the stormtroopers or to make them obey the Constitution. She knew it wasn’t sufficient, and voted no.
One Republican, weird Thomas Massie of Kentucky, voted against the bill, because “online censorship.” (Fuck it, why not.)
In addition to providing $10 billion in funding for ICE operations — roughly the same as last year, separate from the ginormous $175 billion bonanza for ICE in the Big Ugly Bill earlier this year — the $64 billion DHS funding bill provides funding for FEMA, TSA airport security, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, and a bunch of other stuff.
The DHS bill was part of a package of 2026 appropriations bills that will fund the government through the end of September, when the new fiscal year begins. Now the whole mess goes to the Senate, which must pass the funding bills by January 31 to avoid a government shutdown.
Is there a ghost of a chance Senate Dems will force changes to DHS funding that could really bring Trump’s deportation Gestapo to heel? There’s that supposed power of the filibuster as a means of forcing concessions, but heavens, we wouldn’t want to trigger a government shutdown again, since then there’d be no constraints on ICE, whereas now the bill contains provisions that DHS will completely ignore. Back in a moment, gotta barf.
We can’t really get too hopeful about Senate Dems holding the line here — although you never know, perhaps they’ll surprise us! — so instead we’ll close by reminding you that right now, tens of thousands of people in Minnesota are closing their businesses and walking out of their schools in a general strike. They are loudly, joyfully even, telling the government that they want ICE out of their state.
On a day with subzero temperatures and a wind chill that feels like it’s -40° F, hundreds of clergy members and others knelt in prayer outside the Minneapolis airport, and ICE moved in to arrest them; we’re sure DHS will insist they were all terrorists who support violent criminals.
Here’s a nice tip, if you want to follow what’s happening today, from Naomi Kritzer, a Minneapolis resident and author of one of our favorite science fiction short stories, “Cat Pictures Please.”
May some of Minnesotans’ courage rub off on our electeds, the end.
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I cannot look at that picture of that precious little boy without crying.
This is WRONG. Whatever it takes we have to make it STOP.
The Toomush Eldest Daughter, Son-in-Law and Grandson are out there. The Toomush heart swells with pride...