​House passes its own GOP funding plan as Senate clash looms

The House on Friday narrowly passed a Republican-led plan to fund the Department of Homeland Security, setting up a standoff with the Senate, where the measure is expected to stall.

In a 213-203 vote, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Republicans approved a short-term bill that would fund DHS for eight weeks, including border and immigration provisions left out of a bipartisan Senate deal, CNN reported.

According to the outlet, three Democrats crossed party lines to support the measure.

The move is expected to face immediate resistance in the Senate, CNN added. Senate leaders had earlier passed their own bipartisan funding measure, creating dueling approaches as both chambers now head into a two-week recess.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) warned the measure would go nowhere in the Senate, where Democratic support is required to advance legislation, according to media reports.

“It’s a surprisingly aggressive move for the House speaker, who is directly challenging his Senate Republican counterpart, even as he sought to blame Democrats for what he called an ‘unconscionable’ bill,” CNN reported Friday.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said he would not bring senators back from their break if the House passed its short-term funding bill because it lacks a realistic path.

Meanwhile, a DHS spokesperson said Friday that, following an order from President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, the agency has begun processing payments.

“TSA officers should begin seeing paychecks as early as Monday, March 30,” the spokesperson said, according to NBC News.