Air travel across the United States is getting more stressful by the day, and now, a new move by Donald Trump has only added to the debate. The president has decided to send federal immigration officers to airports to help with security during the ongoing government shutdown. But instead of calming things down, many fear this could make an already tense situation worse.
US Immigration officers to step into US airport security- What to know
Trump posted on Truth Social: “On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job.” The problem began after Congress failed to renew funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) last month. Since then, hundreds of thousands of workers, including those from the TSA, Secret Service and Coast Guard, have been working without pay.
At airports, the strain is already visible. Passengers are facing long queues, often waiting for hours to clear security. At the same time, TSA personnel are growing increasingly frustrated as they continue to report to work without pay.
According to the Associated Press, the plan is to bring in immigration enforcement officers to support them. Trump made it clear on Sunday that this will go ahead unless Democrats agree to fund DHS. He reportedly wants immigration officers to guard exit lanes or check passenger IDs so that TSA staff can focus on screening.
At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, passengers reportedly waited up to six hours just to get through security. At one point, only two TSA agents were checking IDs at a major checkpoint. Many travelers missed their flights and rushed to rebook, only to find standby lists already packed. Things looked just as chaotic at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
‘Bad idea,’ says Republican senator
Not everyone is on board, even within Trump’s own party. Senator Lisa Murkowski called the whole idea a ‘bad move.’ Speaking to reporters, she added, “What we need to do is, we need to get the DHS issues resolved, we need to get the TSA agents paid. Do you really want to have even additional tensions on top of what we are already facing?”
Everett Kelley, who heads the American Federation of Government Employees, said immigration officers are simply not trained for airport security work. “Our members at TSA have been showing up every day, without a paycheck, because they believe in the mission of keeping the flying public safe,” he said.
“They deserve to be paid, not replaced by untrained, armed agents who have shown how dangerous they can be.” The plan is being led by White House border czar Tom Homan, who has been in talks with both Republicans and Democrats. Earlier, he described the discussions as “good conversations” but admitted there is still no full agreement.
“This is a work in progress,” Homan said. He explained that immigration officers would not replace TSA staff but support them. For example, they could monitor exits or check IDs before passengers enter screening lines.
“We’re going to be a force multiplier,” he said. At the same time, he acknowledged limits to what they can do. “I don’t see an ICE agent looking at an X-ray machine, because we’re not trained in that,” he said. The focus, he added, would be on major airports where wait times are the worst, sometimes up to three hours or more.
Political deadlock continues
Democrats say they are willing to fund TSA and most DHS operations, but only if there are major changes to immigration enforcement policies. Their demands come after two US citizens were killed during an immigration operation in Minneapolis.
Interestingly, immigration officers themselves are still being paid during the shutdown, thanks to funding from Trump’s tax cuts law passed last year.
For passengers, the biggest issue right now is uncertainty. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said travellers simply don’t know how early they need to reach the airport anymore.
“Do I have to come an hour and a half early? Do I have to come four hours early? They don’t know until the day of or the afternoon of their flight,” he said.