Trump Deploying ICE To Airports As TSA Crisis Spirals Amid DHS Shutdown
President Donald Trump announced that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will begin deploying to airports nationwide on Monday in an effort to relieve mounting security delays caused by the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
The move comes as Transportation Security Administration staffing shortages have pushed wait times to extreme levels, with some travelers reporting lines stretching up to three hours at major airports.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said ICE would assist overwhelmed TSA personnel who have continued working without pay for weeks as the funding standoff drags on in Washington.
“On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents,” Trump wrote, adding that the agents would step in as delays worsen and absenteeism rises.
Border czar Tom Homan is expected to oversee the operation, with plans being finalized to determine how many agents will be deployed and how they will be utilized.
Homan clarified that ICE agents would not replace TSA screeners at checkpoints but would instead handle other responsibilities to free up trained personnel for critical screening duties.
“I don’t see an ICE agent looking at an x-ray machine,” Homan said, noting that the goal is to reassign TSA workers to specialized roles and improve the flow of passengers through security.
The situation at airports has rapidly deteriorated.
At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, wait times have approached three hours, while George Bush Intercontinental Airport has seen delays nearing two hours.
In the New York area, John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport have experienced severe congestion, with lines stretching far beyond standard checkpoints.
Even Newark Liberty International Airport has reported inconsistent wait times, adding to the regional travel strain.
The root of the crisis lies in the prolonged DHS funding impasse.
Roughly 50,000 TSA employees have been working without pay for over a month, leading to rising absenteeism, resignations, and widespread disruptions.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that conditions could deteriorate further as additional missed paychecks push more workers off the job.
“So I do think it’s going to get much worse,” Duffy said, pointing to the increasing number of agents calling out or quitting altogether.
The ICE deployment has already sparked political backlash.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries criticized the plan, arguing that ICE agents are not trained for airport security roles and warning it could create further chaos.
Republicans, however, have defended the move as a necessary response to a crisis they blame on the ongoing funding standoff, while Democrats continue to push for standalone funding measures that exclude immigration enforcement agencies.
As negotiations remain stalled, the administration is moving forward with its plan, signaling a significant shift in how federal resources are being deployed to keep the nation’s transportation system functioning during the shutdown.