Senate Approves ICE and Border Patrol Funding Through Trump's Second Term

<p>The Senate has approved funding for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol through the end of President Trump's second term. The decision followed an 18-hour voting session where multiple amendments targeting Trump's priorities were defeated.</p><p>The final vote was 52-47, with Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) voting against the funding and Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) not participating in the vote. The session allowed for unlimited amendments, which led to GOP leadership repeatedly defeating proposals that aimed to challenge two specific provisions related to Trump.</p><p>During the voting process, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) relied on Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to defeat a Democratic proposal aimed at the anti-weaponization fund. Cassidy's support enabled Senators Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) to vote with Democrats without risking the amendment's defeat.</p><p>Despite some Republicans voting against Trump, the threshold for barring funds for the ballroom was set at 60 votes, resulting in failure. Senators Collins, Husted, Sullivan, Moran (R-Kan.), and Tillis (R-N.C.) joined Democrats in the vote.</p><p>The vote-a-rama occurs as Senate Republicans face declining polling numbers and question Trump's political decisions. Some Republicans have expressed skepticism regarding Trump's choice of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence. Trump has indicated that Pulte will not be his permanent nominee to alleviate concerns regarding the nomination's impact on the reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). However, a procedural vote on FISA renewal was blocked by enough Republicans joining Democrats, leading to its failure shortly after the reconciliation vote advanced early Friday morning.</p>