U.S. Government Enters Partial Shutdown
Tehran - BORNA - The funding lapse officially began at midnight Saturday Eastern Time, hours after U.S. senators reached an agreement to fund the majority of agencies through September.
The U.S. Senate passed a massive funding package on Friday with a 71-29 vote. The package includes five annual appropriation bills and a two-week funding extension for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). However, the legislation will not become law before the start of the partial shutdown at midnight, as it still requires approval from the House of Representatives and the signature of President Donald Trump.
The vote followed a week of political tension ignited by the killing of a nurse in Minneapolis by a Border Patrol agent. The incident sparked public outcry and led Democrats to oppose the inclusion of DHS funding in the six-bill package.
Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have sharply criticized the tactics used by U.S. immigration agents following the fatal shooting of Alex Preti in Minneapolis last week. Alex Preti, a critical care nurse, was shot after an altercation with a U.S. Border Patrol agent during which several agents attempted to restrain him. On Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a civil rights investigation into the shooting.
At the last moment, the Senate reached an agreement with the White House to decouple the Homeland Security budget bill from the other five bills that fund the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, Transportation, State, and other agencies.
This agreement saved the package from a total shutdown. Despite the Senate's approval, the package still awaits a vote in the House of Representatives next week, amid warnings that the partial shutdown could affect broad sectors, including the Department of Defense.
Democrats hailed the passage of the five bills as a victory, emphasizing that they protect key social programs and reject Trump’s proposed cuts, while pledging to push for immigration policy reforms during the two-week window granted to the DHS. Conservative Republicans criticized the removal of the department's funding and warned of the failure to reach a future agreement.
President Donald Trump reached the deal with Democrats after they refused to grant more funding for immigration enforcement following the fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis by federal agents.
This marks the second such government shutdown in Washington in the past year, occurring just 11 weeks after the end of a previous budget impasse that lasted 43 days—the longest shutdown in U.S. history. That 2025 shutdown, which lasted from October 1 to November 14, had widespread impacts on essential government services, including air travel, and left hundreds of thousands of federal employees without pay for weeks.
According to the BBC, this shutdown is unlikely to be as long or extensive, as the House of Representatives is scheduled to reconvene on Monday. However, the White House has instructed several agencies, including the Departments of Transportation, Education, and Defense, to implement shutdown plans.
A White House memo to agencies stated: "Employees should report to work for their next regularly scheduled tour of duty to perform orderly shutdown activities. We hope this lapse will be brief."
The U.S. President has called on Republicans, who hold the majority in the House of Representatives, to vote for the deal. Lawmakers intend to use the two-week DHS funding period to negotiate an agreement. Democrats demand that the deal include new policies for immigration enforcement agents.
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said: "We must rein in ICE and end the violence. That means ending mobile patrols. It means requiring compliance with laws, oversight, and judicial warrants... Masks must come off, cameras must stay on, and agents need visible identification. No more secret police!"
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