High-profile Republican governors are urging the GOP to continue to oppose funding the Department of Homeland Security. Efforts to balance the budget have recently become entangled with President Barack Obama’s executive action on immigration. While both the Republicans and the Democrats recognize the potential economic and security risks that come with the latest budget crisis, neither seem willing to give in. The Department’s funding runs out on February 27, giving Congress less than a week to end the standoff.

Several Republican presidential hopefuls are using this occasion to draw lines in the sand over party loyalty.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has said that Republicans “need to be aggressive in pushing back” against the president’s unlawful actions.

“I think there’s a tremendous opportunity,” said Walker. “Particularly in light of the win that we had in court the other day, to make a further stand here about the president’s actions being an overstep on immigration.”

The “win” which the Governor is referring to is a 26 state lawsuit, which is lead by Texas and includes Wisconsin, filed back in December contending that Obama does not have the legal authority to permit immigrants to remain and work legally in the United States. Additionally, a Texas federal judge blocked the amnesty program on the day it was supposed to begin.

Another Republican who is considering a presidential bid in 2016, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, has said that the ruling “vindicates the efforts of the Congress to use the power of the purse to prevent the administration from doing what the constitution does not permit them to do.”

There would be only a limited impact on national security if the Department was shutdown. There is a category of exemption for all workers whose jobs involve protecting human life and property. This includes the Secret Service, the TSA, the Coast Guard, even the Customs and Border Protection that is so involved with the current debate.

Needless to say, Democrats are exasperated by the Republican party’s latest antic since they have taken full control of Congress.

“It’s just like one more reflection of the dysfunction and the fact that the Republicans came down here and said that they were going to govern differently,” said Democratic Governor Jack Markell of Delaware. “And you’re back to where it was.”