ICE deployed to US airports as shutdown strains security system

US immigration agents are beginning to appear at major airports across the country, as a prolonged funding standoff in Washington starts to visibly disrupt basic operations in air travel.

The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed that hundreds of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are being sent to support airport security, with deployments already underway at more than a dozen hubs, including New York’s JFK and Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson.

The move is a response to mounting pressure inside the system. Since mid-February, parts of DHS have been operating without full funding, leaving Transportation Security Administration staff — the people responsible for passenger screening — working without pay. Absences have increased, and more than 300 employees have quit, stretching capacity at already busy airports.

The result has been predictable: longer queues, slower processing, and visible strain at security checkpoints.

Officials say ICE agents are not replacing TSA officers but filling peripheral roles. As border security chief Tom Homan put it, “While adhering to all the security guidelines and the protocols, we’re simply there to help TSA do their jobs in areas that need their specialised expertise.” He added that agents could take on simpler tasks, such as guarding exits, allowing trained staff to return to screening lines.

President Donald Trump has also weighed in on how the deployment should look, saying he wants agents to remove face masks.

“I don’t like it for the airport, and I believe they are willing to do that,” he said.

But the decision is already facing pushback — not just from Democrats, but from parts of Trump’s own party.

Critics argue the issue is not manpower but misallocation. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries warned that “the last thing that the American people need are for untrained ICE agents to be deployed at airports all across the country”, pointing to concerns about both competence and escalation in sensitive environments.

Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski echoed that concern more bluntly, calling the plan a “bad idea” and arguing that the real solution is restoring funding and paying TSA staff.

Labour representatives have also stepped in. Everett Kelley, head of the union representing TSA workers, stressed that employees have continued showing up “without a paycheck” out of commitment to public safety.