The Democrats’ Real Constituency

by Brent E. Zepke, Esq.

In February 2026, Congressman Salud Carbajal (D, CA) along with 213 of his Democrat congressional colleagues voted to not fully fund the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Fortunately, the 217 Congressional Republicans voted to fully fund the DHS, and the bill went to the Senate.

In March 2026, Senators Adam Schiff (D, CA) and Alex Padilla (D, CA) joined most of their Democrat colleagues in the Senate in voting not to fully fund the DHS unless there were restrictions placed on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), such as limiting the use of masks by their agents and warrantless searches.

What the Democrat Senators Caused

Massive delays began at airports as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents had to choose between working without being paid and/or seeking other ways to support themselves and their families.

The surprise was not how many of the more than 50,000 TSA agents stopped coming to work either temporarily, or permanently, in order to seek employment that actually paid. The surprise was how many of the agents continued to come to work while working a second job, one in the private sector that pays its employees, while also cutting expenses by doing such things as sleeping in their cars.

Ironically, during this time it is estimated that the average illegal alien receives welfare benefits worth an estimated $61,000/year.

Every person involved in airports from the flight crews to the vendors to the traveling public suffered as flights were delayed, or canceled, and waiting times in some airports exceeded four hours.

Businesspeople missed meetings, families missed vacations or family emergencies, and crew members missed connections.

However, having received a seat through “senatorial courtesy” during an airline strike it is my experience that the Congressmen and Senators are not experiencing the same delays that they voted to thrust on the rest of us.

Why DHS Was Not Fully Funded