Republican senators are rallying around their calls to abolish the filibuster following the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner over the weekend, a move they say is now more vital than ever to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
Democrats have used the 60-vote threshold since Feb. 14 to block agency funding after policy negotiations broke down on federal immigration enforcement, and the GOP-led House has not approved a Senate-passed measure to fund most of DHS except for U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“The Democrats will do it when they get the majority,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), referencing Democrats’ support for nixing the filibuster when they were in the majority, said on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures. “At a moment of national danger, if Democrats refuse to fund DHS, I will say this would be the time to nuke the filibuster for good.”
Other conservatives made similar cases for Republicans to nuke the filibuster, which they could do with a simple majority vote.
“No more delays. No more excuses,” Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) posted to social media. “If Democrats still insist on filibustering DHS funding, it’s time to nuke the filibuster. No more playing around. Senate GOP colleagues, who else is on board?”
Citing the threat to the nation’s most powerful government figures in the room, including President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and members of the Cabinet, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said DHS and Secret Service should be “funded immediately” by way of removing the filibuster.
“Once again, someone tried to kill President Trump, and this time the perpetrator could have killed the Vice President and most of the cabinet,” Scott tweeted.
The conservative trio of Johnson, Lee, and Scott often presents a powerful negotiating bloc during contentious policy debates, but their previous calls to end the filibuster have not convinced enough of their colleagues. Republicans have lacked the votes in the face of resistance from GOP leadership and other rank-and-file members, who fear further eroding of the filibuster would one day come back to bite them. It’s unclear how, if at all, Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump may change the party’s calculus.
Meanwhile, Trump and other Republicans also pointed to the incident as the latest reason to support the swift completion of the president’s new White House ballroom, which has faced delays amid ongoing lawsuits seeking to thwart the estimated $400 million project.
The alleged gunman, 31-year-old Cole Allen, was set to be arraigned in court on Monday after law enforcement officials said he stormed a Secret Service perimeter Saturday night while armed in an attempt to gain entry into the main ballroom.
The inability to reopen DHS is fueling a $70 billion plan to end-run Democrats on immigration enforcement through a process known as budget reconciliation, which could pass in the coming weeks with only Republican votes.
INSIDE THE ROOM: TERROR AT THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) has repeatedly bucked Democrats to vote with Republicans in favor of DHS funding to end the shutdown. But at least six more Democrats would be needed to clear a filibuster in the chamber that Republicans control 53-47.
“All we need is seven Democrats — seven Democrats at this moment — to fund all of DHS in a moment of national risk,” Johnson said in his Fox interview. “If we don’t get that… we need to end that filibuster. This gridlock, this obnoxious obstruction by Democrats, cannot go on.”