Republicans Create Chaos, Fail to Secure the Border

WASHINGTON — Today, the House passed Republicans’ 2025 Homeland Security funding bill that squanders billions of dollars on useless, ineffective border and enforcement measures while disregarding the threats presented by terrorists, transnational criminals, foreign adversaries, and violent extremists.

This bill:

• Fails to secure the border by wasting billions of dollarson ineffective and disproven strategies instead of investing in sustainable immigration reform that both strengthens border security and benefits American families and businesses.
• Deliberately forces chaos at the border and in cities across the country by eliminating the Shelter and Services Program and withholding the resources and policies needed to manage our border humanely and support communities receiving migrants across the U.S.
• Fails to protect Americans from terrorism and violent extremists byunderfunding programs that enhance regional preparedness and response capabilities and counter extremism.
• Weakens our national security through inadequate cybersecurity and infrastructure security investments, exposing the U.S. to increased cyberattacks and foreign adversary influence.

“The extreme, partisan bill that House Republicans passed today will not keep our communities safe. This bill ignores our country’s most pressing needs and fails to fund the priorities that keep our country safe, healthy, and prepared to meet our nation’s most pressing problems with resolve,”  said Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14). “Our job is to make sure that the men and women who are making sacrifices every day to protect our country have the resources they need to do their vital work. That is what the American people are counting on us to do. House Republicans have decided to ignore that responsibility, choosing partisan theatre and extreme MAGA politics over substantive results. After the chaos and dysfunction of the majority’s appropriations process last year, this is a disappointing result that I’d hoped we would avoid. I urge my majority colleagues to put people over politics and commit to working in a bipartisan manner going forward so that Congress can truly meet our country’s needs and keep our communities safe.”

Congresswoman Underwood’s full remarks are here.

“The harmful 2025 Homeland Security funding bill that passed today fails to secure the border and instead, stokes disorder – wasting hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars along the way. After rejecting every serious legislative effort to address and lessen the crisis at the border, House Republicans have proven that they are more focused on creating chaos than on keeping communities safe,” Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) said. “This bill weakens our national security and fails to counter terrorism and extremism, restraining the government’s ability to counter disinformation campaigns used by global adversaries and other bad actors to undermine our elections. Final funding bills will require bipartisan negotiations to make sound investments. But the majority’s process is driving Congress toward further chaos, dysfunction, and shutdown threats.”

Congresswoman DeLauro’s full remarks are here.

A summary of the bill can be found here. A fact sheet of the bill is here.

The text and accompanying report of the legislation, before action on the House Floor, is available here.

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