U.S. Senate Passes Immigration Bill After Debate Over $1.8B Justice Fund
The U.S. Senate passed a nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement reconciliation bill early Friday, June 5, 2026, on a 52-47 vote after an 18-hour amendment session. The bill funds immigration agencies through President Trump’s term. Debate centered on a controversial $1.8 billion Justice Department “anti-weaponization” fund, criticized as a slush fund for Trump loyalists. Amendments to restrict or redirect the fund failed, including one by Sen. Bill Cassidy to prioritize January 6 victims. The bill now moves to the House.
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Senate Passes Immigration Bill After Controversial Fund Eliminated, Trump Immunity Retained
The U.S. Senate passed a $70 billion reconciliation bill focused on immigration enforcement. The bill originally included a controversial $1.776 billion 'Anti-weaponization Fund' intended for victims of federal prosecutions, but this fund was removed due to Republican opposition. However, a separate provision granting former President Donald Trump and his associates immunity from further audits and liability for taxes still owed was retained in the final legislation. The trade-off highlights the political dynamics and compromises involved in passing the large spending package.
Just In NewsRepublican Senate Caves to Trump, Passes ICE Funding Without Slush Fund Limits
The Republican-controlled Senate passed a clean reconciliation bill funding ICE and other immigration enforcement for three years, despite earlier public criticism from over a dozen GOP senators of President Trump's 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' (slush fund). Majority Leader John Thune orchestrated a strategy to defeat all amendments, including one to block the slush fund, by allowing a few vulnerable senators (Collins, Sullivan, Husted) to vote with Democrats while persuading other critics (Tillis, Cassidy, Cornyn, McConnell) to vote with leadership. The all-night session ended with only Lisa Murkowski voting against final passage. The fight continues: a federal court hearing on the fund's legality is set for June 12, and the House, with a narrow Republican majority and weaker Speaker Mike Johnson, may still attach blocking language to the bill.
The American ProspectImmigration Bill Passes Without Curbs on Justice Department 'Anti-Weaponization' Fund
The U.S. Senate passed a nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement reconciliation bill early Friday morning on a 52-47 party-line vote, after an 18-hour 'vote-a-rama' dominated by debate over a Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund. The fund, criticized as a 'slush fund' for Trump loyalists, was not restricted in the final bill. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., held up proceedings for hours seeking to amend the fund to only benefit Jan. 6 victims, but his amendment required 60 votes and failed 52-47. Other attempts by Sen. Thom Tillis and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also failed. The bill now heads to the House, where Majority Leader John Thune warned including fund curbs could be problematic. The fund was initially announced at $1.8 billion but later faced backlash; however, lawmakers remained concerned it could still be used.
Roll CallSenate passes immigration bill without curbs on Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund
The U.S. Senate passed a nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement reconciliation bill early Friday morning on a 52-47 vote, sending it to the House. The bill funds immigration agencies for the remainder of President Trump's term. The vote capped an 18-hour 'vote-a-rama' dominated by debate over a $1.8 billion Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund, which critics called a 'slush fund' for Trump loyalists. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., held up passage for hours seeking an amendment to restrict fund payouts to Jan. 6 victims and their families, but the amendment required 60 votes and failed 52-47. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., offered a separate amendment to divert the funds to fraud enforcement, which failed 15-84. Senate Majority Leader John Thune expressed concern that including fund amendments would be problematic in the House and for presidential signature.
Roll CallImmigration Bill Passes Without Curbs on Justice Department 'Anti-Weaponization' Fund
The U.S. Senate passed a nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement reconciliation bill early Friday morning on a 52-47 vote, after an 18-hour amendment session. The bill funds immigration agencies through the remainder of President Trump's term. The debate was dominated by controversy over a $1.8 billion Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund, intended to compensate alleged victims of political prosecutions but criticized as a 'slush fund' for Trump loyalists. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., held up proceedings for hours seeking to restrict the fund to Jan. 6 victims, but his amendment was ruled to require 60 votes and failed 52-47. A separate amendment by Sen. Thom Tillis to divert the funds to fraud enforcement was defeated 15-84. Senate Majority Leader John Thune expressed concern that including fund curbs would complicate House passage and presidential approval. The bill now moves to the House.
Roll CallTrump's Primary Involvement Sparks Senate Vote-a-Rama Drama
A group of seven Republican senators, including retiring Sen. Thom Tillis and those targeted by President Trump's primary challenges, caused high drama during the Senate's reconciliation vote-a-rama on June 4, 2026. The group opposed the Justice Department's $1.8 billion 'anti-weaponization' fund, which was later scrapped but still caused friction. Tillis unsuccessfully pushed an amendment to block the fund, which was rejected 15-84. The vote-a-rama began with a nearly three-hour delay when a motion to recommit stalled while Sens. Cassidy, Husted, and Sullivan held off voting. The episode highlighted tensions within the slim Republican majority and anxiety over the upcoming midterm elections, with Trump's political influence serving as an additional pressure point on Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
Roll CallSenate defeats Tillis plan to turn $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund into an anti-fraud fund
The Senate voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to defeat an amendment by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) that would have redirected $1.8 billion from the Justice Department's proposed 'anti-weaponization' fund to instead bolster efforts against fraud targeting U.S. taxpayers. The amendment would have prohibited federal funds from being used to establish, administer, defend, or pay claims related to the original fund. The decisive vote reflects bipartisan opposition to the proposal, though the specific vote tally was not provided in the excerpt. The outcome leaves the $1.8 billion allocation for the anti-weaponization fund intact, at least for now.
Just In NewsImmigration budget bill suffers setback as House leaves town
A Republican-led immigration enforcement reconciliation bill (S 2) faced significant hurdles in the U.S. Senate on June 4, 2026, as the House abruptly left town for the week, delaying further action. The Senate rejected a procedural motion by Minority Leader Charles Schumer to send the bill back to committee by a 49-50 vote, effectively keeping it alive. The main point of contention is a nearly $1.8 billion Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund, which critics, including some Republicans, deride as a 'slush fund' for Trump loyalists. Senator Bill Cassidy filed an amendment to restrict payouts from the fund to victims of the January 6, 2021 attack. Senate Majority Leader John Thune warned that including such a fund amendment could be problematic in the House and with the President. Senator Thom Tillis's own amendment to block the fund was overwhelmingly rejected 15-84. Senators continued to seek a bipartisan agreement on amendment votes to complete work on the measure late Thursday night.
Roll CallImmigration Budget Bill Faces Slow Start in Senate Amid Fight Over Justice Department Fund
The Senate began its amendment 'vote-a-rama' on a GOP reconciliation bill for immigration enforcement, but the process was slowed by bipartisan anger over a nearly $1.8 billion Justice Department 'anti-weaponization' fund. Minority Leader Charles Schumer's procedural motion to send the bill back to committee was narrowly defeated 49-50, with three vulnerable Republicans crossing party lines. Senator Thom Tillis offered an amendment to block the fund by diverting money to fraud enforcement, which failed 15-84. GOP leaders had previously stripped $1.46 billion in Justice Department funding from the bill, making such amendments harder to pass. Several other amendments were filed, including by Senator Bill Cassidy, who proposed measures to prohibit the fund, nullify a Trump IRS settlement, and create a January 6 compensation fund.
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