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Congressional Republicans on Tuesday continued their assault on President Obamas signature accomplishments and his ambitious budget proposal. But they faced stiff resistance from Democrats.

The developments illustrated how a GOP majority in both chambers is no guarantee that Republicans will get what they want.

The Republican-led Senate tried and failed to move ahead on a bill that would fund the Department of Homeland Security but strip it of money for Obamas executive actions on immigration. The Republicancontrolled House again voted to repeal Obamas sweeping health-care reform law, a symbolic move that stands no chance of taking effect. And in both chambers, Republicans sought to shoot down Obamas $4 trillion budget in advance of releasing their own plans.

Senate Democrats blocked a $40 billion DHS funding bill that passed the House and would cover the department through September. They oppose the bill because of the GOPs effort to stop Obamas executive actions on immigration, including his decision to stem the deportations of millions of undocumented immigrants.

The move leaves unresolved whether DHS will receive a new funding bill before current spending runs out Feb. 27. The agency is bracing itself.

A shutdown of the DHS in these times is frankly too bitter to contemplate, but we have to contemplate it, said DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson.

The vote to proceed to debate on the bill fell almost entirely along party lines, with all 46 Democrats uniting to leave Republicans short of the 60 votes needed to advance the measure.

Sen. Dean Heller (Nev.), whose state is home to many Hispanic residents, was the sole Republican to join with Democrats. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) voted no, but only as a procedural tactic that allowed him to bring the bill up again.

Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters that a clean DHS spending bill meaning one without provisions regarding Obamas immigration actions would be the only measure Senate Democrats could support.

Ahead of the vote, Democrats claimed Republicans were risking shutting down a key government agency amid heightened concerns about terror threats. Republicans countered that Democrats were acting unreasonably by preventing even an initial step forward on the measure.

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GOP majority faces problems as Democrats block bill to fund DHS in immigration fight