Senate Republicans advance a DHS funding plan tied to ICE and border security while adding Secret Service money for White House security upgrades, including an East Wing modernization project.

As the Senate returns to Washington, a familiar GOP strategy is running into a new political problem: funding for major immigration enforcement priorities at the Department of Homeland Security, paired with additional security money for President Trump’s East Wing overhaul of the White House.

Republicans are preparing the next steps in their plan to finance DHS immigration enforcement through fiscal year 2029 without Democratic support.. The centerpiece of their proposal is a large funding package for the agencies that enforce immigration laws. including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.. But the inclusion of extra Secret Service funds aimed at security adjustments and upgrades connected to the East Wing Modernization Project could shift the fight from purely immigration policy to a broader. politically charged debate about how taxpayer dollars—or closely related appropriations—will be used.

Last week. Republicans on the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security committees unveiled legislative text that would fund DHS immigration enforcement through fiscal year 2029.. The total package is $72 billion, including more than $38 billion for ICE and $26 billion for Customs and Border Protection.. It also sets aside $1 billion for the Secret Service for security adjustments and upgrades. with the intent of supporting enhancements tied to the 90. 000-square-foot East Wing Modernization Project.

Within that project description. the bill would allow the new security funds to be used for “above-ground and below-ground security features.” The scope of work described includes not just surface-level changes. but also revamped underground national security and health care facilities—elements that. while framed as security-related. raise questions for Democrats who view the project as inseparable from the president’s plans for a major ballroom.

President Trump announced the East Wing makeover last July.. The administration moved quickly after demolishing the structure by October. arguing the work is necessary for security and for hosting large events.. The president later reiterated the push after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting late last month. tying the project to the broader argument that the White House must be prepared for high-profile visitors and events.

The construction has not been a smooth political or legal path. It was challenged in court and temporarily blocked in late March, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia allowed the project to resume last month. A further hearing is scheduled for June 5.

The White House signaled support for the Senate package’s security money when it was introduced last week.. In a statement. a White House spokesman said Congress recognized the need for the funds and argued that the complex where the president works and receives visitors must be safe and secure for future generations.

The legislative language also includes guardrails: it stipulates that none of the funds may be used for non-security elements of the project.. That matters because Trump has repeatedly said the ballroom itself would be funded through donations rather than taxpayer money.. Democrats. however. have used the presence of the security appropriation tied to the East Wing modernization as ammunition. arguing it demonstrates GOP support for a project that they say is unpopular with voters.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. writing to Senate Democrats on Monday. framed the controversy in stark political terms. contrasting the administration’s priorities with Americans’ cost-of-living pressures.. He pledged that his caucus will fight the GOP plan “with every tool we have. ” but acknowledged Democrats cannot stop the measure on their own unless Republicans decide to include them or change course.

That reality sits at the center of the Senate math shaping both the immigration policy fight and the fallout over the White House project.. Republicans hold a 53-seat majority.. While most legislation typically requires 60 votes to move forward. reconciliation allows a measure with direct budgetary consequences to advance with only a simple majority when it meets the procedural requirements.

The addition of the Secret Service security funding could therefore create complications not just in the policy debate. but in electoral politics on both sides of the Capitol.. With November elections approaching and multiple GOP candidates in competitive races. the ballroom-linked controversy could place some lawmakers in a difficult position—especially if they are also trying to defend a hardline immigration agenda.

The unfolding dynamic is expected to define the Senate’s return to work this week.. After Senate Republicans adopted a budget resolution last month. committees are expected to mark up the DHS package in the coming days before it reaches the floor.. President Trump has set a deadline: both chambers must approve the legislation and send it to his desk by June 1.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune defended the provision tied to the Secret Service money on Monday.. He said the Secret Service has a job to do and that lawmakers want to ensure it can carry out its responsibilities effectively.. Thune also suggested he expects support from within the GOP conference once senators have an opportunity to hear the explanation for the provision and discuss it further over the coming days.

For Republicans, the immigration funding effort is designed to move without Democratic cooperation.. For Democrats, the White House ballroom and the East Wing modernization provide a new focal point for attacking the strategy.. And for senators. the coming days may determine whether the DHS package clears the procedural pathway with fewer votes than usual—or whether the added political risk surrounding the White House project becomes a new hurdle even as the schedule tightens.

DHS funding ICE Customs and Border Protection Secret Service White House East Wing modernization Senate Republicans budget reconciliation