Trump Orders ICE and Other DHS Agents to 14 Airports as TSA Sick‑Outs Drive 6‑Hour Lines During DHS Shutdown
As the partial DHS shutdown enters roughly its sixth week, the administration has deployed ICE and other DHS personnel to assist with crowd management and non‑screening duties at 14 major airports — including Houston, Atlanta, New York and Phoenix — after unpaid TSA officers staged widespread call‑outs. More than 3,400 TSA staff (about 12% of those scheduled) have been absent, producing security waits reported up to six hours, closed PreCheck/CLEAR lanes and missed flights, while the move has intensified political fights over tying DHS funding to the SAVE America Act and prompted safety criticisms from Democrats.
📌 Key Facts
- On March 23–24, 2026 the administration moved from proposing to actively deploying ICE and other DHS agents to assist at 14 U.S. airports; agents were visibly present at major hubs including JFK, Hartsfield‑Jackson (Atlanta), and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental, while DHS declined to publish a full list of locations.
- The deployed ICE and DHS personnel are being used for non‑screening duties — line management, crowd control and directing passengers through checkpoints — while TSA officers continue identification checks and screening; DHS and local officials say they are not being used for immigration enforcement.
- The deployments respond to widespread TSA staffing shortages caused by a partial DHS shutdown: TSA officers have been unpaid since mid‑February and more than 3,400 officers (about 12% of those scheduled) called out on Sunday, the highest level since the shutdown began.
- Staffing shortfalls have produced severe passenger impacts: reported wait times as long as six hours (notably at Houston), lines stretching through multiple floors, subway corridors and outside terminals, closure of PreCheck and CLEAR lanes, ADA/access complications, and passengers missing flights.
- Administration officials defended the action as necessary to keep airports operating during the shutdown, with acting DHS officials blaming Democrats for risking safe and dependable air travel by not approving funding.
- President Trump publicly tied DHS funding to passage of the SAVE America Act (including voter ID/proof‑of‑citizenship requirements), urging Republicans not to make a deal without it and saying the measures should be merged into one bill — a stance that created a new roadblock in shutdown negotiations.
- Political reactions were sharply divided: some Republican senators are exploring funding parts of DHS without ICE as an off‑ramp, Democrats warned the ICE deployment poses public‑safety risks and used strongly critical rhetoric, and analysts say the move functions as both an operational patch and a political symbol.
- Additional reported directives and contingencies include Trump telling federal agents not to wear masks while working at airports and warning that National Guard troops could be deployed if no shutdown deal is reached; the shutdown had stretched roughly six weeks (~38 days) as of these reports and could run into mid‑April amid congressional recesses.
📊 Relevant Data
In 2023, the TSA workforce was composed of 43.3% White, with other races including significant Hispanic (22.2%) and Black (14.3%) representations, indicating overrepresentation of minorities compared to the general U.S. population where Whites are about 59%.
Transportation security screeners - Data USA — Data USA
TSA attrition rates increased by 25% following the previous government shutdown, exacerbating staffing shortages in subsequent crises.
TSA Officers Are Quitting As Funding Standoff Forces Them To Work Without Pay — The Intelligencer
ICE deportation officers typically undergo 13 weeks of integrated basic training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, compared to TSA officers who attend a 2-week training program at the same center.
Houston's population grew by 200,000 residents since 2010, with roughly 70,000 being immigrants, contributing to a 40% increase in the Hispanic population.
Houston's 15-year growth in three charts — Kinder Institute for Urban Research
The Atlanta region gained nearly 135,000 people from international migration between April 2020 and July 2024, with the Hispanic/Latinx population in the city of Atlanta growing by 37% from 2010-2020 compared to 18% overall population growth.
Approximately 12% of registered voters in the U.S. lack common documentary proof of citizenship, with disparities showing higher rates among voters of color.
Do Documentary Proof of Citizenship Requirements Disadvantage One Party More Than the Other? — Bipartisan Policy Center
📰 Source Timeline (9)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
March 24, 2026
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.