ISTANBUL

The United States may be heading toward another partial federal government shutdown, as Democratic lawmakers threaten to block funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) amid growing political tensions.

The risk follows last year’s longest federal government shutdown in US history, which was triggered by budget disputes in Congress.

Protests intensified in Minnesota after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on Saturday shot and killed a 37-year-old American citizen, identified as Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse.

In response, Democratic members of Congress said they would not support a budget bill that includes funding for the DHS, significantly raising the risk of a partial shutdown.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer described the incident as “appalling” in a social media post and said Senate Democrats “will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.”

These developments have increased the likelihood of a partial federal government shutdown beginning at midnight on Friday.

More than 60 chief executives of Minnesota-based companies, including Target and Best Buy, have called for immediate de-escalation between state, local, and federal authorities.

The House of Representatives has already passed several budget bills, but Senate approval is required for federal funding to continue.

Last week, the House of Representatives approved budget bills to fund the Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Homeland Security departments.

As the approved temporary budget expires on Jan. 30, four bills were put forth before the House of Representatives.

The DHS funding bill passed by a narrow margin of 220–207, while the bills funding other departments were approved by a much wider 341–88 vote.

The total size of the budget bills' funding, including the Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Homeland Security departments, is around $1.2 trillion.

If the budget bills are approved by the Senate, US President Donald Trump will sign them into execution.

US’ longest-ever federal government shutdown

The US federal government shut down on Oct. 1, 2025, after Congress failed to approve a temporary funding bill before the start of the new fiscal year.

Federal agencies were forced to suspend many operations as disagreements between Democrats and Republicans led to the longest government shutdown in US history.

The shutdown ended after 40 days, when Democratic and Republican senators reached an agreement on a temporary budget.

Democratic senators agreed to drop demands for extended health care subsidies, and the Senate passed the bill by a 60–40 vote on the 41st day of the shutdown.

Only one Republican senator voted against the measure, while eight Democrats and independent senators voted in favor.

The House later approved the bill by a 222–209 vote, funding most federal agencies until Jan. 30 and providing full-year funding for some departments.