Trump Orders ICE Agents to 14 Airports as TSA Sick‑Outs and 450 Officer Quits Drive Severe Shutdown-Era Delays
President Trump ordered ICE and other DHS agents to assist at 14 U.S. airports as a partial DHS shutdown left TSA officers unpaid and many calling out or quitting—more than 3,200 callouts (roughly 11–12% of scheduled staff) and about 450 resignations—producing massive lines and reported wait times of up to six to nine hours at hubs including Houston, Atlanta, JFK and others. The agents, paid from a separate appropriation and deployed mainly for crowd control and passenger processing, have triggered partisan backlash and complicated stalled congressional talks as the White House ties DHS funding to the SAVE America Act while some lawmakers seek to fund TSA without ICE.
📌 Key Facts
- President Trump ordered ICE and other DHS personnel to assist TSA at 14 U.S. airports to manage crowds and checkpoint lines; ICE agents were observed on site at airports including JFK, Atlanta’s Hartsfield‑Jackson, Houston (Bush and Hobby), Phoenix, Philadelphia and New Orleans.
- The deployments are explicitly for line management and crowd control (not immigration screening); on‑the‑ground reporting showed ICE agents directing passengers at choke points, handing out water, and in some cases largely "standing around," while TSA officers continued ID checks and screening.
- The operational move follows a partial DHS shutdown that left TSA officers unpaid since mid‑February; about 95% of TSA’s 60,000 workers are classified as "essential" and must work without pay (with statutory back pay owed later).
- Sick‑outs and resignations have driven the disruption: at peak more than ~3,400 TSA officers (about 11.6% of those scheduled) called out and DHS says more than 450 officers have quit during the shutdown; some airports reported callout rates above 30–40% (HOU 40.3%, ATL 37.4%, IAH 36.1%, MSY 34.9%).
- Travel impacts have been severe: passengers reported multi‑hour waits (CBS documented waits up to six hours; some claims of longer), three‑floor and subway‑spanning lines, closed PreCheck/CLEAR lanes, missed flights, limited access to water/air conditioning and ADA‑compliance problems for wheelchair users.
- ICE agents assisting at airports are being paid because their salaries come from a separate multi‑year appropriation in the 2025 legislative package, while TSA pay was halted by the DHS funding lapse.
- The deployments have become politically charged: Democrats warned the move poses public‑safety risks and castigated ICE’s presence, while acting DHS officials and the White House framed it as necessary action; President Trump used a Memphis speech to demand DHS funding be tied to his SAVE America Act (voter ID/proof‑of‑citizenship measures) and said he might also deploy the National Guard and ordered agents not to wear masks at airports.
- Lawmakers are weighing responses: negotiators are considering a bipartisan Senate deal to restore TSA and DHS funding while excluding ICE deportation operations and adding statutory guardrails (including body‑camera/ID mandates), and some GOP senators have discussed funding TSA without ICE as an off‑ramp.
📰 Source Timeline (13)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
March 24, 2026
6:59 PM
Delta suspends special services for lawmakers amid government shutdown
New information:
- Delta Air Lines says it is suspending specialty services for members of Congress because the prolonged shutdown and TSA staffing issues are straining its resources.
- The article documents passenger accounts from Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport describing hours‑long TSA lines with poor access to water and air conditioning.
- It underscores that lawmakers will now experience the same degraded airport conditions as regular passengers when flying Delta unless they have elite SkyMiles status.
- The piece notes travelers’ explicit calls for Congress to pass a DHS funding measure and reopen the government.
- It adds that Senate Republicans have sent Democrats a formal DHS offer and are signaling they "have" a solution, suggesting possible movement toward ending the shutdown.
6:33 PM
TSA callouts hit Houston, Atlanta, New Orleans hardest, 450 officers have quit nationwide
New information:
- DHS says more than 3,200 TSA workers called out from their Monday shifts, with the Sunday national callout rate peaking at 11.6% during the shutdown.
- DHS reports that more than 450 TSA officers have quit during the shutdown, citing inability to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent.
- DHS callout‑rate rankings show Houston’s Hobby (HOU) at 40.3%, Atlanta (ATL) at 37.4%, Houston’s Bush Intercontinental (IAH) at 36.1% and New Orleans (MSY) at 34.9%, with JFK, BWI, PIT, LGA, PHL and PHX also listed.
- Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis issues a partisan statement calling it 'Day 38 of the Democrats’ shutdown' and credits Trump’s deployment of ICE agents with easing security delays, including reported waits of up to nine hours in Atlanta.
- Article notes social‑media videos showing ICE agents in Houston handing out water to travelers in long lines and reports that lines in Atlanta appeared lighter on Tuesday than during the prior spring‑break weekend peak.
6:01 PM
Why do ICE agents get paid during the partial government shutdown, but not TSA?
New information:
- Explains that ICE agents assisting at airports are being paid because their salaries come from a separate four‑year appropriation in Trump’s 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act, not the shuttered DHS operating budget.
- Details that about 95% of TSA’s 60,000 workers are classified as 'essential' and must report without pay until Congress passes DHS funding, with statutory back pay owed later under a 2019 law.
- Provides historical context that after the previous 43‑day shutdown in fall 2025, outgoing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem handed out $10,000 bonuses to some TSA staff, highlighting how shutdowns have become recurring labor flashpoints at the agency.
- Clarifies that Trump has publicly floated deploying the National Guard to airports if ICE and TSA cannot keep up with security lines, underscoring the administration’s willingness to use uniformed forces in civilian aviation settings.
3:44 PM
WATCH LIVE: Senate meets as lawmakers consider deal to fund Homeland Security
New information:
- Provides a Senate‑focused view that Trump’s move to order ICE into airport security roles is viewed by lawmakers as 'extraordinary' and potentially escalating tensions, rather than just a stopgap.
- Connects that deployment to an emerging bipartisan Senate deal to restore TSA and broader DHS funding while specifically excluding ICE deportation operations.
- Details that negotiators are considering statutory guardrails on ICE and CBP roles plus body‑camera and ID mandates as conditions for funding.
12:33 PM
Some travelers navigate TSA wait times as long as 6 hours as ICE agents are sent to airports
New information:
- CBS video piece provides on‑the‑ground accounts from travelers at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport experiencing TSA wait times of up to six hours.
- It visually documents security lines at Atlanta’s airport stretching all the way outside the terminal, reinforcing the scale of the disruption.
- Confirms that the ICE and other DHS agents deployed to 14 airports are now physically present on site as those delays play out.
12:04 PM
TSA wait times up to 6 hours as ICE, other agents deployed to 14 airports
New information:
- Reports that some travelers at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport faced security wait times of up to six hours, with lines snaking through a subway corridor, baggage claim and three floors.
- Updated sick‑out figure: more than 3,400 TSA officers — nearly 12% of those scheduled — called out on Sunday, the highest level since the start of the partial shutdown.
- On‑the‑ground description that ICE and other DHS agents are being used to 'shuttle passengers through overcrowded TSA checkpoints,' with a union rep saying he has mainly seen them 'standing around' and questioning whether they are properly trained.
- Disclosure that President Trump has told federal agents not to wear masks while working at airports and has said they may soon be joined by National Guard troops if there is no deal to end the shutdown.
- Note that Senate talks to end the shutdown hit a new roadblock after Trump publicly urged Republicans to hold out for passage of an elections bill Democrats strongly oppose, even as some senators still see a path to fund parts of DHS.
9:00 AM
ICE arrives at clogged airports. But security lines, DHS shutdown persist.
New information:
- Christian Science Monitor confirms ICE personnel arrived or were expected at more than a dozen airports on Monday, including Phoenix, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Houston, New York City and New Orleans, while DHS declines to list locations citing operational security.
- Atlanta’s Hartsfield‑Jackson International Airport urged travelers to arrive at least four hours early because of "TSA staffing constraints," and Mayor Andre Dickens detailed that ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations and Homeland Security Investigations staff will assist with line management and crowd control, not immigration enforcement.
- Acting assistant DHS secretary Lauren Bis issued a statement blaming Democrats for risking "safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel" and framing the ICE deployment as the president "taking action" to keep airports running during the shutdown.
- The article notes that expected DHS funding negotiations did not happen Monday because President Trump chose to wait for confirmation of a new DHS secretary; Markwayne Mullin was confirmed Monday night, meaning the shutdown has now stretched to roughly six weeks and could easily run into mid‑April as Congress heads into a two‑week Easter recess.
- Political‑communications expert Cayce Myers is quoted saying the move will amplify talking points on both sides—Democrats critical of ICE, and Trump arguing he had to "resort to alternative means" to keep TSA functioning—highlighting the deployment’s role as a political symbol as well as an operational patch.
March 23, 2026
9:50 PM
TSA lines at Houston airport a 3-floor nightmare amid staffing shortage
New information:
- At Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, nearly 40% of TSA employees called out on Monday, leaving only two of the airport’s five terminals staffed by TSA officers.
- Security lines in Terminal A became a three‑floor queue stretching into the airport’s underground train system, with announced TSA wait times exceeding four hours and some travelers reporting three‑plus‑hour waits in both staffed terminals.
- CBS News directly observed roughly two dozen armed ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents at Bush Intercontinental stationed along security lines, directing passengers at choke points while TSA officers continued to handle ID checks and screening.
- Houston airport announcements are warning passengers that, because of the federal shutdown, they may not clear security in time for departing flights and should contact airlines to rebook; some travelers have missed flights, with one gate agent telling a passenger that about 40 people missed a single leg the day before.
- PreCheck and CLEAR lanes at Houston were closed, forcing all passengers through standard lines with no access to food while waiting; the route is not ADA‑compliant, requiring separate handling for wheelchair users.
9:37 PM
Top Dems assert there's risk ICE agents could ‘kill’ travelers under Trump airport plan
New information:
- Confirms that ICE agents actually arrived at JFK and Hartsfield-Jackson on March 23, 2026, as part of deployments to 14 airports.
- Provides direct Democratic leadership reactions framing the ICE deployment as a public-safety threat, not just an operational stopgap.
- Adds specific rhetoric about potential shootings and killings, indicating how far opposition leaders are willing to go in characterizing the risk to travelers.
8:25 PM
DHS funding talks in limbo after Trump insists GOP pass SAVE America Act
New information:
- Advances the shutdown timeline from 36 days in earlier coverage to 38 days, indicating no resolution and worsening conditions.
- Documents Trump’s Memphis speech where he demands SAVE America be 'welded in' to DHS funding and tells Republicans to 'make this one for Jesus,' adding color and specificity to his linkage of the two issues.
- Introduces new intra‑GOP dynamics, with Thune and Kennedy both publicly mulling a path to fund TSA and other DHS components without ICE as a potential off‑ramp.
6:51 PM
Trump demands SAVE America Act be tied to DHS funding amid airport chaos
New information:
- Trump used a Memphis law‑enforcement roundtable to insist that Republicans "don’t make any deal on anything" regarding DHS funding unless it includes the SAVE America Act requiring proof of citizenship to vote.
- He described his goal as merging DHS funding with the SAVE America Act into "the great, big, beautiful bill" and said voter ID and proof of citizenship are parts of homeland security.
- Fox reiterates that ICE agents were deployed to airports Monday to assist TSA in managing crowds and non‑screening duties amid unpaid TSA staff and long security lines.
5:30 PM
ICE agents start assisting TSA at U.S. airports as partial government shutdown continues
New information:
- Confirms that the administration’s plan to send ICE agents to assist TSA at airports has moved from proposal to active implementation.
- Reinforces that TSA officers have been unpaid since mid‑February, leading to resignations and call‑outs that necessitated ICE support.
- Provides a mainstream network TV verification that ICE is now part of the stopgap for maintaining airport security throughput during the shutdown.