Indivisibles,

Funding for the Department of Homeland Security ran out at midnight last night, triggering a partial government shutdown. 

How did we get here? 

First, let’s address how we defeated an appropriations bill that would have given ICE and Border Patrol billions of more dollars to terrorize our communities with little to no meaningful restrictions included. 

A little over a month ago, that bill was coasting through Congress. Indivisible and allies were pushing Dems to use their leverage in the appropriations process to put restrictions on ICE and Border Patrol, but not many Members of Congress were on board. Then, the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti focused national attention on the pattern of violence and abuse by these agencies. 

Millions poured into the streets. Hundreds of thousands of calls flooded Congress. Rallies were held outside congressional offices. Our people power worked. Dems listened.

Democratic leaders put forward a list of commonsense policies to address ICE brutality and protect our communities. They made it clear they would not support any appropriations bill without restrictions on ICE. And when the vote came, they did not fold. 

That’s the answer to why Trump isn’t signing a bill today to hand ICE and Border Patrol billions more dollars. That’s not the answer to why we are in a shutdown. 

We are in a shutdown for one reason: Republicans had a choice between supporting massively popular, desperately needed restrictions on ICE and Border Patrol or shutting down DHS. And they chose to shut down DHS. 

What comes next 

Let us be the first to say that DHS is deeply broken, and as soon as possible, we need to dismantle the entire thing and start over. 

But a DHS shutdown in the current moment comes with real costs. DHS oversees FEMA, TSA, and the Coast Guard. A prolonged shutdown could impact disaster relief, air travel, and many other facets of American life -- not to mention the paychecks of a large number of government workers. 

On the flip side, while ICE and Border Patrol do have huge reserves of funding due to Trump’s Big Ugly Bill, Republicans have acknowledged that this shutdown will deplete those funds more quickly and possibly disrupt some ICE and Border Patrol operations. 

A prolonged shutdown is very possible. Dems have introduced legislation to fund all of DHS except for ICE and Border Patrol while negotiations on reforms continue, but at the moment Republicans think the chaos of the shutdown gives them more leverage. It’s up to us to change that. 

What you can do

Supermajorities of Americans think ICE and Border Patrol are out of control and want Congress to do something about it. Democrats are aligned with the public. Republicans hold the unpopular position -- and keeping the heat on them is how we win this fight.

We're going to make Republicans own this shutdown and all of ICE and Border Patrol’s abuses. They walked away from the negotiating table. They rejected massively popular reforms. They demanded more money for an unaccountable secret police force, and they're willing to punish the public with flight delays and other disruptions to get their way.

That's the message we need every American to hear, and with your help, we’re going to build a public backlash that is so strong that Republicans have no choice but to back down. Here’s how you can get started: 

1️⃣ Contact your Members of Congress and encourage your family, friends, and neighbors to do the same. We need to drive hundreds of thousands more calls to Congress to make sure Democrats keep up the fight and Republicans agree to a bill that protects our communities and civil rights.

2️⃣ Sign up for our Tuesday phonebank into Republican states. We’re calling constituents and encouraging them to ramp up the pressure on their Republican senators.

3️⃣ Use our toolkit to organize a district office visit. Both the House and Senate are currently in recess. This is the perfect time to organize an office visit, especially if you have a Republican Member of Congress. If their staff refuse to meet with you, use our toolkit to organize a rally outside their office or other visibility events in your community. Check our map over the coming days to see if there’s already an event in your area.

4️⃣ Chip in to support our pressure campaign. If this fight drags on, we’ll be looking at more protests, billboards, and other tactics to keep the heat on congressional Republicans. The more we raise, the more we’ll be able to do. 

The grassroots pressure is working -- in the past two weeks we’ve blocked increased funding for ICE and Border Patrol twice. Together, we’re going to keep fighting to get real accountability and get ICE and Border Patrol out of our communities for good. 

In solidarity,
Indivisible Team