John Thune says he's aiming to land DHS deal Thursday
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wants to clinch a bipartisan Department of Homeland Security funding agreement Thursday.
“I think the Dems are now in possession of what I think is our last and final” offer, Thune told reporters. “So let's hope this gets it done.”
“We’re going to know soon,” he added.
The South Dakota Republican declined to discuss details of the offer but suggested it was similar to where the discussions were headed over the weekend. GOP senators then were looking at a bipartisan deal that would fund most of DHS but leave out funding for ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations.
That offer was rejected by Democrats. But two people granted anonymity to discuss the revised proposal said it, too, omitted only ERO money but included additional language to try to address some of Democrats’ concerns.
Spokespeople for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Several Democrats who emerged from a closed-door lunch Thursday acknowledged that conversations were ongoing but largely declined to comment.
"I think it's a good sign that there is paper going back and forth. I think there's a lot of sense of urgency around getting TSA funded, but frankly, we're not that far from where we've been for weeks," Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said, explaining that the parties remain divided on what enforcement restrictions should be written into law.
"So trying to figure out exactly how to close that distance is going to be the hard work of the rest of the day," Coons added, joking that appropriators should be maybe locked in a room.
The Senate is expected to vote again on the House-passed DHS bill Thursday afternoon. The House is also voting again on DHS funding Thursday and is planning to leave town Friday morning for a two-week holiday recess. Progress in the Senate could prompt House GOP leaders to stay in session in hopes of sending a bill to President Donald Trump.
Asked about the Senate vote, Thune said he hoped there would be “some finality in this real soon.”