Dems relent, Senate sends $174B spending package to Trump's desk as shutdown looms over DHS funding
The deadline to fully fund the federal government for the fiscal year is Jan 30
By Alex Miller , Elizabeth Elkind Fox News
Published January 15, 2026 4:16pm EST
After a brief series of delay tactics deployed by Democrats, the Senate passed a $174 billion spending package, sending a trio of funding bills to President Donald Trump's desk.
The move puts Congress one step closer to averting a partial government shutdown, but lawmakers are only halfway through completing and passing the legislation needed to keep the lights on in Washington, D.C.
Neither party is keen to repeat the events of last fall, when Congress shattered the record for the longest government shutdown in history at 43 days. Still, hurdles remain before the fast-approaching Jan. 30 deadline to fund the government.
Despite attempts by Senate Democrats to slow the process, with lawmakers railing against recent actions by the Trump administration in Minnesota and Colorado, the power of jet fumes and an impending week-long break from the Capitol smashed through any resistance.
The three-bill package, known as a minibus, includes legislation to fund commerce, justice, science and related agencies; energy and water development and related agencies; and interior, environment and related agencies.
Comparatively, that package, and a forthcoming two-bill package from the House, are much easier lifts for lawmakers to pass than what's to come.
Funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proved tricky, given congressional Democrats' outrage over the agency’s actions in Minnesota.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was hopeful that a forthcoming package would include that bill, and that it could advance through the House to the Senate in the coming weeks.
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dems-relent-senate-sends-174b-spending-package-trumps-desk-shutdown-looms-over-dhs-funding
