Key events
Senate approves funding for TSA and most of DHS, not ICE
Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.
The Senate has ended a budget standoff that has forced thousands of airport security staff to work without pay and caused long delays at airports.
A lapse in government funding has left Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staff – who screen passengers, baggage and cargo – working without pay since mid-February. Airports in several cities have warned travelers to arrive hours earlier than usual because of long security lines.
The agreement would fund DHS components such as the Transportation Security Administration and US Coast Guard, the statement said. CNN reported that the House of Representatives will still need to act before funded agencies within the department can reopen.
The Senate approved the funding package by a voice vote in a rare overnight session.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said the outcome could have been reached weeks ago, and vowed that his party would continue fighting to ensure Trump’s “rogue” immigration operation “does not get more funding without serious reform.”
He added:
double quotation mark Democrats held firm in our opposition that Donald Trump’s rogue and deadly militia should not get more funding without serious reforms.
However, Republican senator Susan Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the Democrats had damaged Congress’ annual funding process, weakened national security, and set “a precedent that they may one day come to regret“.
“Democrats remained intransigent and unreasonable with their list of demands,” she said in a statement.
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In other developments:
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US markets saw their biggest slump since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran on Thursday as Donald Trump said the conflict’s impact on oil prices had not been as bad as he expected. The Dow closed 450 points down, while the S&P 500 dipped 1.7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 2.3%, plunging into correction territory, which happens when an index falls at least 10% below its most recent peak. More here.
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The department of treasury announced that US paper currency will soon feature President Donald Trump’s signature to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary. The move marks the first time a sitting US president’s signature will appear on legal tender. To accommodate this change, the treasurer’s signature will be removed for the first time since 1861. More here.
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The Senate failed to achieve 60 votes needed to pass an amendment to the Save America act that would require voters to present photo ID to cast a ballot. The chamber voted 52-47, falling short of the two-thirds majority needed for it to pass. No Democrats voted for it. Earlier today, Trump urged Republicans to terminate the Senate filibuster.
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During a cabinet meeting today, Donald Trump said that Iran was letting 10 oil tankers through the strait of Hormuz as an apparent goodwill gesture in the supposed negotiations. He also repeated his earlier remarks that Iran is “begging to make a deal”.
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Donald Trump wants to renovate the White House’s treaty room, traditionally a meeting space for diplomats and statesman, into a guest bedroom with an en suite bathroom, according to the New York Times.
