Trump orders DHS to pay all employees despite shutdown

President Trump on Friday ordered the Department of Homeland Security to find a way to pay “each and every employee” of the agency, which has faced an almost two-month-long shutdown due to a congressional impasse, leaving thousands without paychecks. 

The president’s memo directs DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought to “use funds that have a reasonable and logical nexus to the functions of DHS.” It does not list out the specific funding sources that DHS plans to tap, or the exact legal justification for moving those funds around.

“This callous treatment of DHS employees must end in order to ensure that America is not susceptible to security threats and maintains readiness to respond to emergencies,” he wrote, blaming Democrats for the shutdown. “As President of the United States, I have determined that these circumstances constitute an emergency situation compromising the Nation’s security.”

Mr. Trump previewed the move on Thursday, writing on social media that he will “soon sign an order to pay ALL of the incredible employees at the Department of Homeland Security.”

The memo estimates that over 35,000 DHS employees haven’t been paid, including civilian Coast Guard employees and staff at the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency.

Other DHS staff have received paychecks as the Trump administration has attempted to move money around, including Secret Service agents and active-duty Coast Guard personnel.

Employees of two immigration-focused agencies — Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection — have been paid through funding in last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Last week, Mr. Trump directed Transportation Security Administration officers to be paid through similar means, after absences by TSA officers led to hourslong airport lines.

DHS has been shut down since mid-February due to a dispute over immigration enforcement policy. Following the deadly shooting of two Americans by immigration agents in Minneapolis earlier this year, congressional Democrats have opposed funding ICE and CBP without policy changes, but the two parties have been unable to reach an agreement on reforms.

A path forward has emerged over the last week, after Senate Democrats and Republicans approved a bill to fund the bulk of DHS while carving out ICE and parts of CBP, allowing most of the agency to reopen. 

House Republicans initially rejected that plan, but earlier this week, GOP leadership in both chambers indicated they plan to pass most DHS funding through that route. Then, they plan to fund the rest of DHS — ICE and CBP — through the Senate’s reconciliation process, which allows spending bills to be passed with a simple majority without Democratic support.

The House has not yet taken action on the Senate’s bill to fund most of DHS.