Donald Trump's border tsar says he is working on a plan to pull federal agents out of Minnesota as part of a major strategy shift in the controversial crackdown on unauthorised migrants.
But it might not be enough to prevent another US government shutdown after Democrats blocked a vital funding bill to pressure the president to scale back further.
The Senate vote means a partial government shutdown could take effect at midnight on Friday, local time (4pm Saturday, AEDT) if a deal is not reached.
Democrats are demanding Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) end roving patrols in cities and mandate agents stop wearing masks and start wearing body cameras.
Mr Trump said he believed a deal was close. "Hopefully, we won't have a shutdown," he said. "The Democrats, I believe, don't want to see it either."
Earlier, border tsar Tom Homan told a press conference in Minneapolis: "We can do better."
But his "drawdown plan" for the city was contingent on local authorities allowing agents into jails so they could seize and deport unauthorised migrants before they were released.
"What we've been working on is making this operation safer, more efficient, by the book," Mr Homansaid.
"President Trump and I, along with others in the administration, have recognised that certain improvements could and should be made. That's exactly what I'm doing here."
Mr Homan — who has worked for every president since Ronald Reagan apart from Joe Biden — has a long-standing stated preference for targeted deportation efforts focused on people with criminal histories.
It puts him at odds with other White House officials who favour more random checks in public places and raids on sites, including workplaces. But some rights groups say there is little difference between Mr Homan and other officials who advocate for more aggressive tactics, apart from their public messaging.
Days of violent scenes in Minneapolis, and particularly the killing of two protesters by federal agents, have fuelled intensifying public pressure for a change in approach there.
It prompted Mr Trump to remove controversial Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino from the operation and put Mr Homan in charge.
He twice said he was not "coming here looking for photo ops or headlines". The comment was interpreted by some as a swipe at Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose photo shoots in ICE uniforms, at border operations and with caged prisoners have frequently been mocked by critics who have branded her "Cosplay Kristi" and "ICE Barbie".
"I'm not here because the federal government has carried this mission out perfectly," Mr Homan said.
But he insisted "great progress" had been made in talks with local authorities since his arrival several days ago, which he hoped would result in immigration agents being given more access to local jails and prisons.
"So if we get these agreements in place, that means less agents on the street," he said.
"More agents in the jail means less agents in the street. This is common sense cooperation that allows us to draw down on the number of people we have here."
Earlier this month, the Trump administration accused Minnesota's leaders of protecting 1,360 "violent criminals" who were in state custody by refusing to allow their transfer to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Local leaders say it is a phony argument.
Minnesota's corrections commissioner told local media only about 300 people in the state's jails and prisons were subject to ICE requests for transfer.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recently said he told Mr Trump that "his staff doesn't have their facts straight". In a newspaper column, he said the state's corrections department always offered to transfer unauthorised migrants to ICE custody before their release.
Mayor Jacob Frey — who Mr Trump warned would be "playing with fire" if he did not cooperate with federal efforts — said he would meet members of Congress in Washington on Thursday, local time, and continue to push for an end to the crackdown in Minneapolis.
