Before the Department of Homeland Security shutdown at midnight on Saturday as a result of Democrats demanding certain ICE reforms, ABC’s World News Tonight host David Muir and chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce declined to inform their viewers that ICE will be largely immune from the shutdown.
Muir began by introducing Bruce, “Tonight, a partial government shutdown now just hours away. Democrats refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security unless there are major changes to these immigration operations, including having ICE agents remove their masks. Here's Mary Bruce tonight.”
Bruce started her report by cueing up a clip from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, “Tonight, for the third time in President Trump's second term, parts of the federal government bracing for a shutdown. Democrats refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security unless Republicans agree to key changes to immigration enforcement.”
ABC's David Muir and Mary Bruce decline to mention that Democrats' anti-ICE partial government shutdown of DHS won't actually affect ICE because of last year's Big Beautiful Bill. Instead, we only get a clip of Mike Johnson lamenting "What they're going to do is shut down FEMA,… pic.twitter.com/lKexES4QGi
— Alex Christy (@alexchristy17) February 14, 2026
After the clip, Bruce continued, “Democrats demanding that ICE agents stop wearing masks, display identification, coordinate with state and local governments, and obtain warrants signed by a judge before making arrests.”
ICE would love to be able to cooperate with state and local governments, so perhaps Democrats and ABC should talk to Democratic governors and mayors about that. As it was, Bruce then played another clip, this one of Speaker Mike Johnson declaring, “What they're going to do is shut down FEMA, Coast Guard, TSA, and things that hurt real people.”
Some viewers may listen to Johnson’s statement and simply conclude he was mentioning DHS’s other functions, which is only partly true. Due to 2025’s Big Beautiful Bill, ICE and Border Patrol have sufficient funding to keep operating as normal, and back in November, during the last shutdown, DHS used BBB funding to keep paying ICE and CBP agents. Johnson’s statement should be read as saying that Democrats are punishing FEMA, the Coast Guard, the TSA, and, if this shutdown goes on for an extended period of time, American air travelers who will have to deal with long lines at airports in order to go after ICE.
As it was, Bruce then introduced a clip of herself, “Tonight, hours before the government shuts down, the halls of Congress empty. Republican leaders sending lawmakers home for a week-long holiday recess. As he was heading out of town himself, President Trump telling me he plans to get personally involved in talks, but refusing to say if he's willing to make any concessions.”
In a clip of Trump on the White House lawn, Bruce yelled, “How long are you prepared for this fight to go on?”
For his part, Trump declared, “So, I am here to protect law enforcement. Our great police and ICE and Border Patrol and everybody. I'm here to protect them because they're protecting us.”
Bruce concluded by trying to undermine that argument, “And David, Democrats say they're trying to protect the American too after two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were shot and killed by immigration enforcement officers.”
Last year, Democrats and ABC made sure to promote themselves as the civil service’s best friends. Now, when Democrats want to make them go without a paycheck, again, Muir and Bruce can’t even bring themselves to say that the two main agencies Democrats are angry at won’t even be affected by their antics.
Here is a transcript for the February 13 show:
ABC World News Tonight
2/13/2026
6:41 PM ET
DAVID MUIR: Tonight, a partial government shutdown now just hours away. Democrats refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security unless there are major changes to these immigration operations, including having ICE agents remove their masks. Here's Mary Bruce tonight.
MARY BRUCE: Tonight, for the third time in President Trump's second term, parts of the federal government bracing for a shutdown. Democrats refusing to fund the Department of Homeland Security unless Republicans agree to key changes to immigration enforcement.
HAKEEM JEFFRIES: We’ve drawn a hard line in the sand on behalf of the American people. And we're not going to allow the Congress to cross it. ICE needs to be dramatically reformed. Period, full stop.
BRUCE: Democrats demanding that ICE agents stop wearing masks, display identification, coordinate with state and local governments, and obtain warrants signed by a judge before making arrests.
MIKE JOHNSON: What they're going to do is shut down FEMA, Coast Guard, TSA, and things that hurt real people.
BRUCE: Tonight, hours before the government shuts down, the halls of Congress empty. Republican leaders sending lawmakers home for a week-long holiday recess. As he was heading out of town himself, President Trump telling me he plans to get personally involved in talks, but refusing to say if he's willing to make any concessions.
How long are you prepared for this fight to go on?
DONALD TRUMP: So, I am here to protect law enforcement. Our great police and ICE and Border Patrol and everybody. I'm here to protect them because they're protecting us.
BRUCE: And David, Democrats say they're trying to protect the American too after two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were shot and killed by immigration enforcement officers. David.
