Republicans Rush To Fund Immigration Enforcement Bill That Includes Taxpayer Cash for Trump Ballroom

Republicans are hoping to pass a bill in the coming days to fund immigration enforcement agencies for the remainder of President Trump’s term, though a few speed bumps could be lurking for Speaker Mike Johnson, including forcing swing-district members to vote for $1 billion in funds for the president’s new ballroom. The GOP has moved with a great deal of speed on this issue compared to their last reconciliation bill, even as lawmakers have been trying since February to reopen the whole of the department. The shutdown began after Democrats in the Senate blocked consideration of certain funding bills in the wake of two protesters’ deaths at the hands of Border Patrol agents in Minnesota. In exchange for funding the agencies, Democrats demanded reforms, including judicial warrant requirements, the removal of masks, personally identifying information about agents, and a guarantee that independent investigations would take place. In the end, Democrats and the White House could not come to an agreement, forcing Republicans in Congress to adopt their party-line strategy. In a desperate attempt to pay Transportation Safety Administration agents, Senator John Thune agreed to put a funding bill on the floor that would pay for Homeland Security services minus immigration enforcement. After Mr. Johnson consented to a floor vote, the House passed the bill, and the president signed it last month. Though the bill signing ended the longest shutdown in American history, more than 1,000 TSA agents quit their jobs during the spending freeze. Republican lawmakers are returning this week with the goal of passing the rest of the package, which includes funding for ICE, Border Patrol, and Homeland Security Investigations. If enacted, Mr. Trump and his GOP allies would avoid another difficult appropriations process next year for DHS spending. The big political pitfall for Republicans, however, is a provision of the bill to give $1 billion to the White House for the ballroom project, which the president has said is essential for his administration’s and future presidents’ security. The text of the legislation, which was released last week by Senator Chuck Grassley, includes money for the “East Wing Modernization Project,” which is how the administration refers to Mr. Trump’s proposed ballroom. The legislation says the $1 billion in funds will be used for “above-ground and below-ground security features.”Though Mr. Trump said for months prior to the assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25 that the ballroom would be funded entirely by private investment, the new demand that the project be built with taxpayer funds will almost certainly put vulnerable Republicans in a difficult spot. Even before lawmakers began making the case for a publicly funded event space, voters had soured on Mr. Trump plastering his name and design taste all over the nation’s capital. A poll by Yahoo and YouGov last October found that the overwhelming majority of Americans did not approve of building a ballroom to replace the East Wing of the White House, which was traditionally the home of the first lady’s office suite. Only 25 percent of Americans approved of the ballroom project, the survey shows, while 61 percent disapproved. A higher percentage, 32 percent, was more on board when the project did not require public money. Still 53 percent disapproved of the use of corporate funds for the construction. Another poll from last year — one conducted by the Washington Post, ABC News, and Ipsos — found a similar result. That survey shows only 28 percent of Americans approving of the privately funded ballroom construction while 56 percent disapproved. Among independents, the results were even worse for the president. Among independent voters, 61 percent disapproved of the ballroom idea while only 17 percent said they approved.

Republicans Rush To Fund Immigration Enforcement Bill That Includes Taxpayer Cash for Trump Ballroom

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