ICE to Airports: Trump Plan Faces Criticism Amid Shutdown Chaos
Security lines at U.S. Airports stretched for hours Monday as the partial government shutdown entered its second month, prompting President Trump to authorize the deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to assist with screening. The move, announced Saturday on Trump’s Truth Social platform, has drawn sharp criticism from Democrats and civil liberties groups.
The deployment began Monday, with ICE agents reportedly present in a dozen cities, including Atlanta, Georgia, where long lines at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport snaked through baggage claim and onto the curb, according to Reuters photographs. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has been significantly impacted by the shutdown, with agents going unpaid and hundreds reportedly quitting their positions. As of February 14th, at least 376 TSA agents have resigned since the shutdown began, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
White House border advisor Tom Homan defended the deployment, stating on CNN Sunday that ICE agents would support TSA staff in non-specialized roles. “I don’t notice an ICE agent looking at an X-ray machine, because they are not trained in that,” Homan said. He explained that the goal was to allow TSA personnel to focus on their core security functions.
However, the American Federation of Government Employees, representing TSA officers, expressed strong opposition. Jacqueline Simon, the union’s policy director, said the union learned of the plan through Trump’s social media post and press reports, not through direct communication from Homeland Security. “It’s ridiculous and it’s potentially dangerous,” Simon stated, arguing the deployment created a security risk rather than resolving the underlying issue of unpaid TSA employees.
California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a statement Sunday calling Trump’s decision to deploy ICE agents “proving the problem in real time,” and characterizing ICE as “the president’s lawless, under-trained, personal police force.” The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) also condemned the plan, calling it the first instance of a president using armed ICE agents to replace security officers. Naureen Shah, ACLU director of policy and government affairs for immigration, stated the move was “the exact opposite of what the American people are clamoring for,” and called for “real, enforceable changes to rein in ICE and Border Patrol.”
Trump, in his initial social media post, framed the deployment as a means to ensure “our Airports, be FREE and SAFE again,” and also suggested ICE would focus on “the immediate arrest of all Illegal Immigrants who have reach into our Country, with heavy emphasis on those from Somalia.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the plan on the Senate floor Sunday, calling ICE agents “untrained” and warning that their presence at airports would “make the chaos at our airports worse.”
The core of the shutdown stems from a disagreement over funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Democrats are seeking to tie funding to ICE reforms following concerns raised over the killings of Renee Solid and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, and reports of warrantless detention and militarized raids. Republicans have resisted these conditions, and have opposed Democratic bills to fund key components of Homeland Security, including the TSA.
Congress is scheduled to begin a two-week recess at the conclude of this week, potentially prolonging the impasse. Vice President JD Vance posted on social media blaming Democrats for the airport disruptions, even as Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) accused Republicans of “holding TSA agents’ paychecks hostage” to secure more funding for ICE. Representative Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) called for abolishing ICE and paying TSA agents.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, in an interview on MS NOW, claimed Democrats were intentionally creating long lines at airports to gain leverage in negotiations, a claim Democrats deny. Representative Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.) released a statement calling Trump’s plan “a hallmark of dystopian movies” and accusing him of manufacturing chaos for political gain.
Some Republican senators have also expressed reservations. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said, “What we need to do is, we need to receive the DHS issues resolved, we need to get the TSA agents paid.”
The Senate on Sunday advanced the nomination of Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) to be Trump’s next Homeland Security secretary by a vote of 54-37, with two Democrats joining Republicans. A confirmation vote is expected as early as Monday. Airport officials in Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Francisco have not yet received specific guidance from Homeland Security regarding the deployment of ICE agents.