Democrats’ Catch-22: funding ICE to constrain it in a high-stakes funding fight

Democrats say they want to rein in ICE but can only do so by passing a fiscal 2026 Homeland Security funding bill, a process that hinges on Republican support and could hinge on new guardrails such as body cameras, stricter training, and limits on money shifting. With a Jan. 30 shutdown deadline looming, lawmakers from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the Progressive Caucus demand meaningful reforms, while some Republicans hint at concessions. The result is a delicate, high-stakes negotiation where funding the agency is seen as the mechanism to impose accountability, risking a stopgap or government shutdown if no deal is reached.