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By Ben Kelly and Khaleda Rahman
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President Donald Trump announced on Sunday agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will be sent to airports across the country to assist the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) amid the ongoing partial government shutdown.
The Context
TSA officers haven’t been paid since the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) partly shut down on February 14, after Democrats balked at funding the agency and demanded changes to immigration enforcement by federal agents following the fatal shootings of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in January.
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Since then, airline passengers have seen long lines to pass through security screenings at airports across the country due to the shortage of TSA workers. About 50,000 TSA workers are working without pay as negotiations between lawmakers and the White House continue.
The TSA is overseen by the DHS.
What To Know
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump wrote ICE agents would be going to airports starting Monday to help TSA agents “who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all.”
He added that “no matter how great a job ICE does, the Lunatics leading the incompetent Dems will be highly critical of their work. THEY WILL DO A FANTASTIC JOB.”
Trump added that border czar Tom Homan will be in charge of deploying the agents to airports.
Homan said on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday that a plan will be decided by the end of the day about "what airports we're starting with and where we're sending them" and that a "well-thought out" plan would be executed.
Pressed on how well-thought out the plan could be in under 24 hours, Homan told host Dana Bash that ICE "has been at airports across the country for a long time. It's just expanding those things."
Trump's announcement comes a day after he said he would order federal immigration officers to take a role in airport security unless Democrats agree on a bill to fund the DHS.
In a series of posts on Saturday, the president said ICE agents would bring the administration’s immigration crackdown into the nation’s airports.
“Illegal Immigrants who have come into our Country, with heavy emphasis on those from Somalia” would be targeted, Trump wrote in one post on Truth Social.
Funding for DHS failed to advance in the Senate on Friday after Democrats declined to support a bill.
And in a rare weekend session on Saturday, the Senate rejected a motion by Democrats to take up legislation to fund TSA. Republicans argue they need to fund all of the department, not just parts of it.
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What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday: “On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical Left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all. But watch, no matter how great a job ICE does, the Lunatics leading the incompetent Dems will be highly critical of their work. THEY WILL DO A FANTASTIC JOB. The great Tom Homan is in charge!!! President DJT”
Border czar Tom Homan said on CNN on Sunday: "It's a work in progress but we will be at airports tomorrow helping TSA move those lines along."
Vice President JD Vance wrote on X on Sunday: "We’ve all seen the chaos unleashed by Democrats at airports across the country. It’s preposterous that Chuck Schumer continues to hold TSA funding hostage. Thankfully, ICE will bring sanity to our airports starting tomorrow, but it’s far past time for Democrats to fund DHS."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, wrote on X on Saturday: “ZERO Republican Senators voted to fund TSA. This is the seventh time Republicans have blocked pay for TSA. Seven. Times. They would rather hold TSA hostage to try to force billions more for an unrestrained, out of control ICE. Despicable.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said on the Senate floor on Saturday: “Mr. President, the situation at U.S. airports continues to worsen, thanks to Democrats’ refusal to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Thousands of Homeland Security employees have been working without pay for more than a month. The problems of having an unfunded Homeland Security Department continue to multiply. And Democrats? Well, they just seem to shrug.”
Update 3/22/26, 10:30 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
Update 3/22/26, 12:13 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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