Trump deploys ICE agents to US airports as partial shutdown persists
President Trump says ICE agents will be deployed on Monday to assist TSA agents, many of whom began calling out from work, while others quit.
Immigration agents will be deployed in US airports beginning Monday, aiming to alleviate soaring congestion at security screenings amid a weeks-long budget standoff over President Donald Trump's mass deportation drive.
"On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job," Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sunday, one day after threatening to deploy ICE agents to airports if congressional Democrats do not immediately agree to fund airport safety.
Funding has been lapsed since February 14 for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), as Democratic lawmakers demand reforms in the wake of Trump's deadly immigration crackdown in Minnesota.
However, DHS also oversees the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency responsible for airport security screenings, meaning staff around the country have worked for weeks without pay.
Many TSA agents have begun calling out from work, prompting soaring wait times at screening lines, sometimes as long as multiple hours.
More than 300 TSA employees have quit since the shutdown began on February 14, according to the DHS, while US media reported that unscheduled absences had more than doubled.
Some officers are taking on second jobs or relying on donations, union officials say, and several major airports are collecting gift cards and stocking food pantries for TSA staff struggling without pay.
'It gets worse'
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Sunday he thinks the situation is "going to get much worse" in the coming days.
"As it gets worse, I think that puts pressure on the Congress to come to a resolution," he told ABC's "This Week."
Democrats have demanded curtailed patrols, a ban on face masks and a requirement that ICE agents obtain a judicial warrant before entering private property.
While ICE is part of the Department of Homeland Security, it has nonetheless been able to maintain operations using funds approved by Congress last year.