Trump Order to Deploy ICE Agents to Airports During DHS Shutdown Leaves Officials Scrambling Over Role and Safety Concerns
President Trump ordered ICE agents to deploy to U.S. airports starting Monday amid the partial DHS shutdown, and White House border czar Tom Homan said agents would relieve TSA by guarding exits and checking IDs (not operating X‑ray machines) to ease long security lines — but key details on numbers, airports and timing remain unsettled. The surprise directive has officials scrambling to draft plans and prompted sharp criticism and safety, legal and training concerns from Democrats, union leaders and former TSA officials, who warn untrained ICE personnel could heighten security risks and lead to wrongful arrests as TSA struggles with resignations and widespread staffing shortages.
📌 Key Facts
- Over the weekend Elon Musk posted an offer on X to pay TSA salaries (estimated >$40 million per week tied to headcount), and roughly five hours later former President Trump posted on Truth Social that he would deploy ICE to airports if Democrats did not agree to a DHS funding deal; both proposals prompted questions about how private payment or ICE substitution would work in practice.
- The move comes amid a partial DHS shutdown entering its fifth/sixth week, fueled in part by Democratic demands for ICE reforms after the fatal shootings of two protesters in Minnesota; Senate Democrats’ attempt at a TSA‑only funding bill was blocked and bipartisan talks have restarted behind closed doors.
- TSA operational strain is severe: DHS and multiple outlets report roughly 300–376 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown began, call‑out rates have spiked, major hubs have seen waits from about 90 minutes to two hours (with some airports issuing three‑hour advisories), and some checkpoints have closed entirely — officials warn smaller airports could temporarily shut if funding doesn’t resume.
- Trump ordered ICE to 'GET READY' and said ICE would deploy to airports 'on Monday' to 'help our wonderful TSA Agents,' and repeatedly stated ICE would arrest 'all Illegal Immigrants,' with explicit emphasis on immigrants from Somalia.
- White House border czar Tom Homan confirmed ICE agents would be sent to airports to relieve TSA by guarding exits and checking IDs (not operating X‑ray machines), said plans were still being drawn up and that priority would go to large airports with the longest waits, but key details — how many agents, which airports and exact timelines — remained undecided.
- ICE and other officials were reportedly surprised and scrambling to implement the directive; former senior ICE and other officials noted ICE agents are not trained to operate screening machines and suggested Customs and Border Protection officers would make more sense to augment security.
- Security, legal and training experts warned of risks: DHS says TSA screening takes four to six months to train and certify, a former TSA administrator and union representatives called using untrained ICE agents a bad idea that could create security gaps, increase the risk of terrorist exploitation or confrontations with travelers, and further demoralize unpaid TSA staff — while Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy offered a conflicting message saying ICE personnel 'know how to run the X‑ray machines.'
- The plan provoked sharp political pushback: Senate and House Democratic leaders (including Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries and Patty Murray) condemned the deployment as dangerous and likely to cause wrongful detentions or violence, and reporting noted ICE remains comparatively well funded because of last year’s appropriations, complicating the political and operational landscape.
📊 Relevant Data
As of the latest available data, the racial composition of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) workforce is approximately 59% White, 19.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Black or African American, and 3.8% Asian.
Demographics - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — Zippia
In FY 2023, the racial composition of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) full-time workforce was 51.7% White (non-Hispanic or Latino), 20.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Black or African American, and 6.5% Asian, compared to the U.S. population where non-Hispanic Whites are about 58.9%, Hispanics 19.1%, Blacks 13.6%, and Asians 6.3%.
EEO Management Section — Department of Homeland Security
Black Americans comprise approximately 20% of the federal workforce, despite representing 13% of the U.S. population, leading to disproportionate impacts during government shutdowns; additionally, Black households have median liquid assets of $1,500 compared to $8,100 for White households, exacerbating financial strain.
Federal Spending Bill Contains Bitter Medicine for Black Americans — Capital B News
📰 Source Timeline (15)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
March 22, 2026
7:12 PM
Officials scramble to carry out Trump's directive on ICE agents at airports
New information:
- CBS reports that Trump’s weekend Truth Social directive to send ICE agents to airports caught ICE officials by surprise, with one DHS source saying, "I have no idea what we're doing."
- Internal deliberations are underway to figure out how ICE agents could be used for airport security, with officials scrambling ahead of a promised Monday deployment.
- A former senior ICE official tells CBS that ICE agents are not trained to operate screening machines and that Customs and Border Protection officers would make more sense to augment airport security.
- CBS notes that Trump’s public posts explicitly floated using ICE at airports both to "help" TSA and to arrest people in the U.S. illegally if Democrats do not agree to fund DHS.
- The article reiterates that TSA lines have lengthened because hundreds of TSA workers have resigned or called out sick while working without pay during the shutdown, sharpening the context for the ICE deployment.
6:30 PM
Schumer knocks Trump on Iran, plan to send ICE to airports: 'Asking for trouble'
New information:
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer used a Sunday Senate floor speech to condemn Trump’s plan to deploy ICE agents to U.S. airports, calling it 'asking for trouble' and 'another impulsive action by Donald Trump.'
- Schumer argued ICE agents are 'untrained' for TSA duties, have 'caused problems everywhere they've gone,' and that sending them to airports on less than a day’s notice with no clear plan will worsen chaos at security checkpoints.
- The Fox piece quotes Schumer asserting that 'no one has any faith in ICE agents' to perform TSA work and criticizing Tom Homan for still 'drawing up plans' while Trump is already announcing the move.
- The article reiterates Trump’s Truth Social post that ICE will go to airports Monday to 'help our wonderful TSA Agents' and frames the move as leverage in his standoff with Democrats over DHS funding.
5:30 PM
ICE officers set to deploy to airports as delays mount, border czar Homan confirms
New information:
- NPR provides direct quotes from Tom Homan calling the airport operation 'a work in progress' and saying ICE agents will likely relieve TSA of guard duty at terminal entries and exits rather than operate X-ray machines.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, in contrast, tells ABC he believes ICE agents 'know how to run the X-ray machines' because they are under Homeland Security with TSA, revealing an internal messaging discrepancy.
- House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sharply criticizes the plan on CNN, saying 'the last thing that the American people need are for untrained ICE agents to be deployed at airports all across the country, potentially to brutalize or in some instances kill them.'
- The piece specifies that the DHS shutdown has entered its sixth week, notes more than 300 TSA officers have quit, and that ICE remains well funded due to last summer’s 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act.'
- The article ties the origin of the DHS shutdown to the killings of two U.S. citizens by federal immigration agents in Minnesota and details Democrats’ reform demands, including a judicial warrant requirement and restrictions on ICE masks.
5:08 PM
Federal immigration agents sent to U.S. airports to support security during budget impasse
New information:
- AP/PBS piece confirms Trump has definitively decided to 'go ahead' with the plan after using it as a threat the previous day, rather than merely floating the idea.
- Tom Homan specifies two main contemplated ICE roles at airports: guarding exit lanes now staffed by TSA and checking IDs before passengers enter screening areas, with an explicit denial that ICE officers will operate X‑ray machines.
- Homan says he expects to have 'a plan by the end of today' identifying which airports will get ICE agents first and indicates priority will be 'large airports where there's a long wait, like three hours.'
- The article notes that ICE agents are already present at many airports doing smuggling investigations and frames the new role as redeploying existing personnel rather than an entirely new footprint.
- The piece ties the move and Homan’s role directly to ongoing bipartisan Senate talks over the partial DHS shutdown and notes the Senate is using a rare weekend session to advance Markwayne Mullin’s nomination as DHS secretary, with a full confirmation vote possible as early as late Monday.
4:57 PM
Trump to deploy ICE agents to airports Monday
New information:
- Axios provides detailed description from Tom Homan’s CNN interview that ICE agents will not operate X‑ray machines but could guard exit lanes and check IDs to free up TSA officers.
- Article notes that DHS says it takes four to six months to train and certify TSA officers, and that ICE agents have not undergone this process.
- Former TSA Administrator John Pistole tells Axios the acting TSA administrator could legally designate ICE agents as screeners but calls it a bad idea and warns that untrained screeners increase the risk of a terrorist exploiting security gaps.
- The DHS figure of 366 transportation security officers quitting so far during the shutdown is cited, quantifying attrition.
- Trump’s Truth Social post is quoted as saying ICE agents would arrest undocumented immigrants at airports with a 'heavy emphasis on those from Somalia,' and Homan acknowledges immigration enforcement at airports 'all the time.'
- Sen. Patty Murray publicly criticizes the plan on X, warning Americans do not want to be 'wrongfully detained, beat up, and harassed by ICE' at TSA checkpoints.
- A TSA union steward in Atlanta tells CNN that bringing in ICE agents will not solve the underlying problem and warns untrained personnel at checkpoints 'could be a problem.'
- Pistole also flags the risk of confrontations between ICE agents and travelers hostile to the agency and potential demoralization of already unpaid TSA staff.
2:45 PM
Trump and his border czar say ICE will arrive at airports on Monday
New information:
- Confirms on‑the‑record that ICE agents will begin arriving at U.S. airports on Monday, not just 'as soon as next week.'
- Provides a direct Trump Truth Social quote ordering ICE to 'GET READY' and declaring 'NO MORE WAITING, NO MORE GAMES!'
- Adds Tom Homan’s CNN explanation that 'a highly‑trained ICE law enforcement officer can cover an exit, that relieves TSA to go to screening,' clarifying the intended division of labor.
- Includes Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s ABC warning that security lines will 'get much worse' this week and that more TSA agents are likely to quit by Friday if pay is not restored.
- Restates Trump’s claim that ICE will conduct 'immediate arrest of all Illegal Immigrants who have come into our Country, with heavy emphasis on those from Somalia,' underscoring the explicitly targeted enforcement rhetoric.
- Details that Democrats’ demands for ICE reforms are tied to the fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis, adding context to the funding standoff.
2:35 PM
ICE Will Deploy to Airports to Ease Long Lines, Border Czar Confirms
New information:
- Tom Homan, now White House border czar, confirmed on CNN’s 'State of the Union' that ICE agents will be deployed to U.S. airports starting Monday and said plans are still being drawn up.
- Homan framed the move primarily as an effort to ease long TSA lines during the busy travel season and said agents would focus on airports with roughly three‑hour waits, supporting TSA by covering exits and non‑specialized functions.
- Homan acknowledged that key details — including how many agents, which airports, and deployment timelines — had not yet been finalized and would be decided later Sunday.
- House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries sharply criticized the plan, warning that 'untrained ICE agents' at airports could 'brutalize or kill' travelers, referencing the killings of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January.
12:35 PM
Trump says ICE will deploy to airports Monday to assist TSA amid funding standoff
New information:
- Trump states on Truth Social that 'On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents,' indicating a specific date and an asserted operational plan rather than a vague threat.
- He explicitly frames the move as a response to Democrats 'holding back the money' for DHS, reinforcing that this deployment is part of the ongoing DHS funding confrontation.
- Trump says 'The great Tom Homan is in charge!' suggesting that former ICE acting director Tom Homan is overseeing or coordinating the planned ICE role at airports.
March 21, 2026
10:57 PM
Trump says he will order federal immigration officers to help with airport security unless Democrats end shutdown
New information:
- Trump’s new social‑media posts from Florida say he will order ICE officers into airport security 'on Monday' unless Democrats agree to fund DHS, and that he has already told ICE to 'GET READY.'
- He explicitly promises that ICE at airports would arrest 'all Illegal Immigrants' and says they will focus on arresting immigrants from Somalia who are in the U.S. illegally, repeating his claim that Somalis 'totally destroyed' Minnesota.
- The article ties Democrats’ refusal to fund DHS to demands for reforms after a Minnesota immigration crackdown that led to the fatal shootings of two protesters, including calls for better identification for federal officers, a new code of conduct and greater use of judicial warrants.
- PBS/AP updates TSA operational fallout: at least 376 TSA workers have quit since the Feb. 14 partial shutdown began, call‑out rates are climbing, and Senate Democrats’ attempt to pass a TSA‑only funding bill was blocked Saturday.
- The piece notes that bipartisan Senate talks with White House officials have restarted and that Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer both describe closed‑door negotiations as 'productive,' signaling some movement even as the threat hangs.
9:40 PM
Airport security lines are long. Here's what to know if you're flying
New information:
- Reports specific current wait times: up to two hours at major hubs in Houston and Atlanta on Friday, and a three-hour early-arrival advisory from New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International Airport.
- Details operational impacts, including Philadelphia International Airport closing three security checkpoints entirely this week because of short staffing.
- Provides DHS figures that more than 300 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown began and that more than half of TSA staff in Houston and nearly a third in Atlanta and New Orleans called out sick last week.
- Quotes Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warning that if a deal is not reached, current disruption will look like 'child's play' and that smaller airports may have to temporarily close.
- Adds that U.K. Foreign Office officials are warning their citizens of 'longer than usual queues' at some U.S. airports due to the shutdown-linked delays.
- Introduces Elon Musk’s offer on X to personally pay TSA salaries during the funding impasse, and notes that U.S. law generally bars government employees from receiving outside compensation for their work.
8:32 PM
Trump threatens to deploy ICE to run airport security during shutdown
New information:
- Clarifies Trump’s conditional framing that ICE will take over airport security 'if the Democrats do not allow for Just and Proper Security at our Airports,' tying the move explicitly to passage of the GOP funding bill.
- Quotes Trump saying ICE will perform security 'far better than ever done before' and that he looks forward to 'moving ICE in on Monday' and has already told them to 'GET READY.'
- Adds Trump’s statement that ICE at airports would include 'the immediate arrest of all Illegal Immigrants who have come into our Country, with heavy emphasis on those from Somalia,' sharpening the targeting language.
- Provides additional shutdown context: this comes after Senate Republicans blocked Schumer’s TSA‑only funding attempt and after a DHS funding bill failed in the Senate for the fifth time.
- Includes warning from acting deputy TSA administrator Adam Stahl to CBS that TSA 'may have to shut down airports' if funding doesn’t resume, underscoring operational risk.
6:55 PM
Trump Says He Will Send ICE Agents to Airports on Monday
New information:
- Trump followed his initial threat with a second post hours later saying he has 'decided to go ahead with the move' and has told ICE to 'GET READY.'
- He explicitly says he 'look[s] forward to moving ICE in on Monday,' providing a concrete date for the planned deployment.
- The article ties these posts directly to ongoing bipartisan talks on Capitol Hill involving White House border czar Tom Homan, noting those negotiations continued Friday night and into Saturday as the shutdown enters its fifth week.
5:28 PM
For airline passengers, the shutdown answer is simple: Pay TSA officers
New information:
- On March 21 at Atlanta’s airport, passengers interviewed by AP/ABC overwhelmingly say TSA officers need to be paid and that funding them should be Congress’s top priority, with several explicitly blaming Democrats for prolonging the shutdown.
- The article documents Hartsfield‑Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s operational strain in concrete terms: TSA wait times surged to about 90 minutes early Saturday before dropping later in the morning, and staffing shortages have at times forced checkpoint closures.
- It adds contextual detail to Trump’s ICE‑at‑airports threat by noting he singled out immigrants from Somalia as a focus for potential arrests, though no concrete implementation plan has been announced.
- Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer is quoted signaling a tactical shift by promising to offer a TSA‑only funding bill on Saturday, even as it is expected to fail in a rare weekend session.
4:37 PM
Musk offers to pay TSA salaries, as Trump floats ICE at airports
New information:
- Axios timestamps that Musk’s X post offering to pay TSA personnel salaries came early Saturday, followed roughly five hours later by Trump’s Truth Social post threatening to deploy ICE agents to airports if Democrats did not agree to a funding deal.
- It quantifies Musk’s potential commitment by tying it to TSA headcount, estimating that covering salaries could cost more than $40 million per week.
- Axios highlights that it is unclear what prompted Musk’s offer a month into the shutdown and questions how either proposal—private funding of federal salaries or ICE substitution for TSA—would work in practice.
- The article reiterates that Democrats have recently shifted to new procedural tactics in Congress to end the DHS shutdown but that there are still 'few signs of movement.'