The Trump administration has announced that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will be deployed to airports to help manage surging security lines caused by the ongoing partial government shutdown affecting the Department of Homeland Security.

President Donald Trump confirmed the move on Truth Social, writing that ICE will "be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job."

Why the Lines Are So Long

The DHS has operated without funding since mid-February after Congress failed to reach a budget agreement. That has left Transportation Security Administration officers working without pay for more than a month.

The strain has shown. More than 400 TSA agents have resigned since the partial shutdown began, and absenteeism has spiked significantly, according to the White House. The result has been hours-long security queues at airports across the country.

What ICE Agents Will Actually Do

Border Tsar Tom Homan told CNN's State of the Union that ICE agents will not be conducting passenger screenings. Instead, they will cover entry and exit points at airports, freeing up trained TSA officers to focus on screening duties and reduce queue times.

Transport Secretary Sean Duffy argued on ABC News that ICE agents have relevant experience, noting they already operate similar security scanning equipment at the southern border for people and packages.

A DHS spokesperson said the president "is using every tool available" to help American travelers and that hundreds of ICE officers — currently funded by Congress — would be dispatched to affected airports.

Criticism from Unions and Democrats

The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents TSA workers, rejected the plan sharply. Union president Everett Kelley said TSA members had shown up every day without pay "because they believe in the mission of keeping the flying public safe," adding they deserved to be paid, not replaced by what he called "untrained, armed agents."

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the deployment "the last thing that the American people need," questioning whether ICE agents were equipped to handle the sensitive environment of airport security.

The Political Stalemate

Democrats have withheld support for a DHS funding bill in part because of demands for reforms to ICE. Those demands intensified after federal agents fatally shot two Minneapolis residents, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, during protests against immigration raids in Minnesota in January.

Democratic reform demands include banning immigration agents from wearing face masks, requiring better officer identification, and tightening warrant procedures.

A bill to fund DHS and provide back pay for TSA agents failed to advance in the Senate on Friday, leaving the standoff unresolved heading into the week.

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