Editorial: Stop fighting at home while battle is on overseas

The Detroit News, The Detroit News on Mar 7, 2026

Published in Op Eds

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Petty partisan squabbles and election-year gamesmanship at home should take a rest while the nation is engaged in major combat overseas.

A war is not the time for Americans to be battling with each other.

Even as Congress takes up the very serious matter of whether a president has the authority to make war without its OK, distracting fights continue in Washington.

The U.S. government has been in partial shutdown since Feb. 14 because Republicans and Democrats can't come to agreement on funding for the Department of Homeland security.

Democrats are blocking the $64.4 billion DHS budget in an attempt to force policy changes in immigration enforcement. Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have come under fire following the slaying of two American citizens during ICE protests.

While previous appropriations in the One Big Beautiful Budget bill provide money through the end of the year for certain functions, including Border Patrol, ICE and the Coast Guard, other agencies, notably TSA and FEMA, have run out of money.

TSA employees, who staff airports and other transportation centers, are considered essential and are required to show up for work even though their paychecks are suspended.

America needs those workers on the job and fully focused on their duties. Airplanes are particularly vulnerable to the sort of terrorist attacks Iran and its proxies have carried out in the past.

Staff shortages at TSA were already creating flight delays and cancellations. Further disruptions are anticipated if the payless paydays continue.

Members of the Secret Service, charged with protecting America's elected leaders, are also working without pay.

The situation the country currently is in demands hyper-vigilance on the part of those charged with keeping America secure.

That security should not be compromised by partisan bickering.

Immigration policy can be debated after the real fighting is over. This moment demands that all security personnel are at their posts without unnecessary distractions.

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