Amid a deepening funding deadlock in Washington after the partial government shutdown, US President Donald Trump said Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will be sent to airports from Monday, marking a sharp escalation in his response to the crisis affecting homeland security agencies.
In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump said ICE personnel would assist Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers who have continued to work despite uncertainty over funding. He also lashed out at Democrats, accusing them of holding back funds that had already been agreed upon.
“On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical Left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all,” he wrote.
The decision follows days of boiling tension between the White House and congressional Democrats over funding for homeland security agencies. The impasse has affected the TSA, which is responsible for passenger screening at US airports.
The US President had earlier repeatedly warned that he would take action if lawmakers failed to reach an agreement. On Saturday, he said ICE agents were being prepared for deployment and could take on security roles at airports if the situation did not improve.
The decision shows a clear change in how the Trump administration is handling the situation. Normally, ICE officers deal with immigration issues, such as finding and deporting people who are in the country illegally, not checking passengers or managing airport security.
By sending them to airports, Donald Trump is trying to plug increasing gaps in security at a time when many TSA officers have been working without pay due to the ongoing funding deadlock. The strain has started to show on the ground — many staff have stopped coming to work, while several continue despite financial pressure, leading to longer queues, fewer open checkpoints and rising stress on airport operations.
The shutdown began after Democrats refused to approve funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees both TSA and ICE, unless changes were made to immigration enforcement policies. Their stance followed a controversial crackdown in Minnesota, where federal agents were involved in fatal shootings that triggered protests and outrage, raising serious questions about how these operations were being carried out.
Republicans, however, rejected proposals to fund only non-immigration parts of DHS, such as airport security, keeping the deadlock in place. Talks between the White House and Democrats have gone on for weeks without a final deal, although recent discussions suggest both sides may be trying to find a way forward.
With inputs from agencies
