U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Largest federal law enforcement agency, responsible for border security and customs enforcement. - Separately funded, operations continue

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) partial shutdown that began at 12:01 a.m. on February 14, 2026, has entered its second week after Congress recessed without passing funding legislation. The standoff stems from Democratic demands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) restrictions following fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents in Minneapolis last month. Most of DHS's 272,000 employees—including 61,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screeners—continue working without pay, with new emergency measures suspending trusted traveler programs amid rising staffing strains.

Updated 6 days ago

The federal border agency that partnered with ICE in the Minneapolis operation and whose agents killed Alex Pretti. - Partner agency in operation

From December 4, 2025, to February 12, 2026, Minneapolis became the testing ground for the largest federal immigration enforcement operation in American history. Operation Metro Surge deployed 2,000 agents to the Twin Cities, resulting in over 4,000 arrests—and the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal officers. On February 12, White House border czar Tom Homan announced the operation's conclusion, declaring Minnesota 'now less of a sanctuary state.'

Updated Feb 12

CBP is the largest federal law enforcement agency, responsible for border security, customs, and immigration inspection at ports of entry. - Border Patrol agents involved in Pretti shooting

A brief three-day partial government shutdown ended February 3 when the House passed the Senate's split funding package 217-214 and President Trump signed it into law, providing full-year appropriations for five agencies through September while extending Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding via a two-week continuing resolution through February 13. The shutdown stemmed from Senate Democrats blocking a $1.2 trillion spending package on January 29 after two fatal shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis within three weeks, prompting President Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to negotiate the funding split.

Updated Feb 5

Federal agency responsible for border security, now conducting enforcement operations 1,000 miles from nearest border in Minneapolis. - Agents killed Alex Pretti, facing scrutiny over Minneapolis operations

Three Minnesota congresswomen walked into a Minneapolis ICE detention center on January 10, were allowed entry, then were ordered out minutes later. They'd come to inspect conditions after an ICE agent shot 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Good in the head three days earlier during what the Trump administration called the largest immigration enforcement operation ever. DHS cited a seven-day notice rule that a federal judge had already blocked as illegal—a policy DHS Secretary Kristi Noem secretly signed the day after Good's killing. When Democrats sought emergency court intervention, Judge Jia Cobb refused to block the policy on January 20, ruling on procedural grounds while explicitly declining to find the policy lawful.

Updated Jan 30

CBP decides where international arrivals can be processed—and who pays when appropriations won’t. - Controls airport inspection designations and the fee-based access model

The U.S. border doesn’t just move at the desert. It moves at airports—quietly, through paperwork. CBP’s latest technical amendment rewrites who gets on the “user-fee airport” list: five airports get customs access they can pay for, and one airport (Ontario, California) gets off the tab.

Updated Dec 17, 2025

CBP is the gate where advance authorization becomes an actual parole entry. - Controls port-of-entry parole decisions and tracks encounters used in DHS rationale

DHS just turned a promised “legal pathway” into a ticking clock. A Federal Register notice published December 15, 2025 terminates every Family Reunification Parole program tied to seven countries—and tells people already here that their parole will end on January 14, 2026.

Updated Dec 15, 2025