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The partial government shutdown that began over the weekend ended Tuesday after the House passed a $1.2 trillion funding package by a razor-thin 217-214 vote which President Donald Trump promptly signed. The deal funds most federal agencies through September but only extends Department of Homeland Security funding through February 13—a compromise negotiated by Senate Democrats and the White House after fatal shootings by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis sparked outrage.
The 10-day window for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reform negotiations sets up another potential shutdown, with Democrats demanding body cameras, warrant requirements, a ban on masked agents and an end to roving patrols, while Republicans push back on restrictions to Trump's immigration enforcement. As the deal is still being scrutinized for beneficiaries and injuries, we take a look at how its architects are faring.
Mike Johnson ⬆
The House Speaker quelled the Republican opposition to the deal after Trump personally called wavering members which earned him the chance to declare: "I'm happy to report Republicans got the job done." Sure, 21 Republicans still voted against the measure, offset by that same number of Democrats who voted for it, and, besides, it looked like Trump did most of the work—but at least for one afternoon and the 10 days before DHS funding runs out, the GOP is the party of getting things done.
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John Thune ⬇
Asked if a deal could be reached in the next 10 days, the Senate Majority Leader replied: "There's always miracles, right?" Earlier, he said it would be "really, really hard to get anything done" adding: "I wish they'd given us more time." Nothing says leadership like celebrating Tuesday's victory by predicting next week's failure.
Anna Paulina Luna ⬇
The Florida Republican Congresswoman declared the SAVE Act, which would require voters prove their citizenship at the polls, was "my price for a 'yes' vote," then, after Trump summoned her to the White House, settled for vague assurances about considering, perhaps, maybe a "standing filibuster" rules reform. House Republican red lines are more like gentle suggestions when the president calls.
Hakeem Jeffries ⬇
The House Minority Leader sat on the sidelines while Schumer cut the deal with the White House, then watched 21 Democrats vote "yes" despite his calls for "dramatic reform" and casting his own "no" vote. When your caucus splits on your signature demand, you're not leading—you're spectating.
Chuck Schumer ⬆
Democrats have been protesting outside his Brooklyn home, angry about the lack of fight they're seeing from their national party. Now the Senate Democratic Leader is in the captain's seat negotiating ICE reforms with Thune, not Trump, and insists Democrats won't budge without "strong, common-sense legislation that reins in ICE." Being unpopular at home beats being irrelevant in Washington.
ICE ⬅➡
The agency stays funded even if the rest of DHS—including TSA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard—shuts down on February 13, thanks to the $75 billion it already received from last summer’s Big Beautiful Bill. Democrats are making a shutdown threat over an agency that they can't shut down.
Originally a staple of Newsweek's print edition, Conventional Wisdom used arrows to track whose stock was rising or falling in the political circus. We're reviving it in the digital age because the problem it lampooned—hyperbole and partisan certainty masquerading as insight—has only intensified.
CW assigns arrows—up, down, or sideways—to the figures and forces shaping current events. The arrows don't predict the future or claim special insight. They capture the prevailing winds of the moment, uncluttered by tribal howling. In an era when partisan media reinforces rather than questions assumptions, CW operates from the center—skeptical of left and right alike, committed to puncturing inflated reputations and recognizing overlooked truths.
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