Former Trump administration official Marc Short told Newsmax Friday that Republicans should press Democrats harder over their refusal to fund the Department of Homeland Security.
He called the standoff a national security risk and political liability.
Short said on "Ed Henry: The Big Take" that Democrats were refusing to fund DHS even as security concerns were rising, and he argued Republicans should make that case more aggressively.
He said a recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement policy shift had already taken place under President Donald Trump, pointing to border czar Tom Homan's role in Minnesota and changes affecting immigration enforcement, including the use of body cameras.
"What is also missing in this conversation is that we're in a military conflict with the world's largest sponsor of terrorism, who has called for, 'Death to America,' has murdered thousands of American soldiers on the battlefield, has on numerous terrorist attacks, has funded Hamas and Hezbollah," Short said.
"The fact that Democrats are not funding the Department of Homeland Security in the midst of this conflict is really outrageous."
Short, who was former Vice President Mike Pence's chief of staff, framed the dispute as larger than a partisan spending fight.
"Candidly, it should be a bigger. I mean, not only could it be a traditional national security crisis, but it should be a political liability for Democrats," he said.
"And I think Republicans should be more central in their focus here and attacking Democrats for refusing to fund Homeland Security in the midst of this crisis."
His comments came after Senate Democrats again blocked a Republican-backed DHS funding measure.
Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked the bill in a 51-45 procedural vote, with Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., the lone Democrat to vote to advance it.
Democrats have argued they want policy changes tied to immigration enforcement before backing long-term DHS funding.
Reuters reported in January that Senate Democrats demanded new restrictions on immigration agents, including heightened accountability measures, as part of the DHS funding fight.
"The reality was that there was a change in policy. And I think that the president, when installing Tom Homan, having Homan report directly to him was that shift. And you've seen, obviously, 3,000 ICE agents leave" Minnesota, he said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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