The White House confirmed Sunday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will begin deploying to U.S. Airports Monday to assist the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as travelers face increasingly long security lines. The move comes as a partial government shutdown continues and TSA employees go without pay.
White House border czar Tom Homan said the ICE deployment is intended to support the TSA “fulfill its mission and to secure the American public through airports as quickly as possible, respecting all rules and security protocols.” He shared the information during an interview on CNN’s ‘State of the Union’ program.
President Donald Trump had threatened to assign the task to ICE if Democrats did not approve funding for the TSA, whose workers have been unpaid since February due to the political impasse over the administration’s immigration policies.
“Get Ready!”
In a subsequent message posted on his Truth Social platform, Trump stated he has already instructed ICE to report to airports Monday. “I’m looking forward to ICE being there on Monday, and I’ve told them: ‘Get ready!’” he wrote.
Homan explained that the agents will assist the TSA “in areas that do not require specialized knowledge.”
“There are functions One can perform to free up TSA agents from non-essential tasks, such as monitoring an exit, so they can return to the screening machines and get people through faster,” he said. The deployment underscores the growing strain on the transportation system amid the ongoing shutdown.
The Senate rejected funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the fifth time Friday since February, leaving the department in a partial shutdown for five weeks. Both TSA and immigration agencies fall under the DHS umbrella.
The suspension of TSA worker paychecks has led to resignations and absences, causing significant delays at major airports across the country, including those in Atlanta, New York City (JFK), and New Orleans.
The Democratic opposition to funding the DHS stemmed from an incident in January where two citizens in Minneapolis were fatally shot by federal agents during large-scale immigration raids activated by the Trump administration in Minnesota.
