Vance torches Senate 'vacation' amid 42-day DHS shutdown: 'Get back and do your jobs'
WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President JD Vance has delivered a blistering ultimatum to the United States Senate, accusing lawmakers of "savaging" the American people by entering a scheduled two-week Easter recess while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains partially shuttered.
In a fiery sit-down with Benny Johnson, Vance declared he is ready "TODAY" to cast the deciding vote to pass the 'SAVE America Act', framing the current impasse as a betrayal of national security.
The vice president’s remarks come at a moment of extreme tension in the capital. While the Senate passed a stopgap measure early Friday to fund most of DHS, the deal pointedly excludes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the very agencies at the heart of the 42-day standoff.
Vice President JD Vance SAVAGES The Senate for Going on Vacation Without Fully Funding DHS and Passing the SAVE America Act.
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) March 27, 2026
JD tells me he stands ready TODAY to cast the deciding vote to PASS the Save America Act and will be ready if called upon.
"I am available whenever they… pic.twitter.com/HyZor9V51g
Vance insisted that "the very minimum" required before any senator departs town is a full reopening of the department, rather than a piecemeal solution that leaves border agents without pay.
JD Vance blasts GOP senators over filibuster defense
Vance reserved his sharpest vitriol for Republican institutionalists who refuse to scrap the 60-vote filibuster threshold.
Specifically calling out Senators Lisa Murkowski and Mitch McConnell, Vance labeled their defense of the rule the "dumbest political move" he has ever witnessed.
He argued that by preserving the filibuster, Republicans are effectively handing a poison pill to the next Democratic majority.
"I would bet every dollar that I own," Vance told Johnson, "that the next time Democrats have control in the Senate, they will break the filibuster, pack the Supreme Court, and destroy this country."
The vice president’s rhetoric mirrors a growing movement among MAGA-aligned senators like Ron Johnson, who have recently called for a "paradigm shift" to end the gridlock that has led to five shutdowns in recent years.
'SAVE Act' stalls over Senate filibuster hurdle
A central pillar of the president’s agenda, the 'SAVE America Act', which would mandate photo ID and documentary proof of citizenship for federal elections, has become the primary casualty of the Senate’s 60-vote requirement.
Vance confirmed he is "available whenever they would like to pass it," but lamented that the GOP currently lacks the "50 senators who would overrule the filibuster" to allow him to cast the deciding vote.
Democratic leaders, led by Chuck Schumer, have slammed the act as "voter suppression," leading to a seventh failed procedural vote on Thursday.
Vance countered that the refusal to pass the bill while DHS is unfunded is a sign of "Radical Left" obstructionism, arguing that the Senate’s inability to secure the vote stems directly from "Republicans playing along" with the Democratic shutdown strategy.
JD Vance tells the Senate to 'do your jobs'
As TSA staffing shortages lead to "historically long" lines at major airports and over 480 agents quit due to the lack of pay, Vance’s message to the upper chamber was simple: "Get back and do your jobs."
He criticized the "reconciliation" path proposed by Majority Leader John Thune as a "punishment" for the party, arguing that the delay only weakens the administration's leverage.
