Partial shutdown drags on as US House takes no action on compromise deal

Partial shutdown drags on as US House takes no action on compromise deal Senate-passed funding plan for DHS languishes despite agreement between Republican congressional leaders Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The US House of Representatives on Thursday took no action on a compromise measure that would end the partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security , raising questions about how much longer the record-long funding lapse will persist. The department has been without funding since mid-February, after Democrats refused to vote for its appropriations unless Republicans agreed to new guardrails on federal agents involved in immigration enforcement operations. Talks between the two sides appeared deadlocked until last week, when the parties announced a deal that saw the Senate pass a measure funding most of the DHS, with the exception of Immigration and Customs Enforcement , as well as elements of Customs and Border Protection , two agencies that play a lead role in Trump’s mass deportation campaign. The agreement was derailed when House Republicans rejected the Senate bill, and instead passed their own legislation funding all of the DHS for 60 days. Senate Democrats quickly vowed to block its passage with the filibuster. House Republicans appeared to cave on Wednesday, when John Thune, the Republican Senate majority leader, and his counterpart in the lower chamber, the speaker, Mike Johnson , agreed to drop the House’s bill and advance the Senate measure. Both chambers are on recess through next week, but on Thursday morning Thune appeared at a brief ceremonial session and formally rejected the House measure, then sent the Senate’s version back to the lower chamber. The leader’s motions were unanimous, since no lawmakers from either party appeared in the chamber to object to them. But when the House convened for its own pro forma session lasting just shy of three minutes later that morning, it did not take up ...