US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will be sent to airports to help with increasingly long lines at security checkpoints, the Trump administration has announced.
US President Donald Trump posted on social media that ICE agents will be sent to airports on Monday, while Border Czar Tom Homan stated that details of the plan were being finalized.
The union representing Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers criticized the administration's decision, arguing that airport staff deserve to be paid, not replaced by untrained, armed agents.
Travelers have experienced hours-long airport security queues as a result of the partial government shutdown affecting the Department of Homeland Security.
The shutdown has left TSA agents without pay since mid-February, causing a surge in staff absences and resignations. The President indicated that the deployment of ICE agents is part of an effort to alleviate delays at airports caused by the staffing crisis.
ICE agents will not conduct passenger screenings but will oversee entry and exit points to free TSA agents for their designated roles, according to Homan.
The announcement has drawn negative reactions from Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who labeled the deployment of ICE agents “the last thing that the American people need” and criticized their lack of training for airport security tasks.
Despite support from the Trump administration, the deployment of ICE agents remains a contentious issue as Congress struggles to reach an agreement to fund the DHS, which has critically impacted TSA operations and access to essential security staffing.
