ICE Agents deploy to airports as Dems keep DHS shutdown going

Jack Cowhick
The Daily Caller
Mon, 23 Mar 2026 20:18 UTC

© Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images

Severe airport congestion at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on March 23, 2026 due to a shortage of TSA agents.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have deployed to several airports as Senate Democrats continue to withhold funding from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

ICE was deployed Saturday to assist Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers amid a nationwide airport crisis, as the partial government shutdown left TSA officers without pay and suspended their "nonessential privileges and courtesies," according to DHS. President Donald Trump had threatened in a Saturday Truth Social post to deploy ICE agents to airports if the "Radical Left Democrats" failed to agree on a funding bill — hours after a fifth vote to end the shutdown failed 47-37.

ICE agents have been deployed to at least 13 airports, according to a list CNN published Monday. The list includes Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport — which consistently ranks as the busiest in the U.S. — where more than a third of TSA officers "called out sick" according to Axios.

Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman broke ranks with Senate Democrats amidst the shutdown, stating that he was the only Democrat "through this entire thing" to oppose a government shutdown. "Let's just reopen DHS, pay everybody, stop all these lines and make our nation more secure," Fetterman said Friday.

Elon Musk offered on Saturday to pay the salaries of TSA officers in an X post, although no government officials have appeared to have commented on the offer and the legality of doing so remains unaddressed.

DHS did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation's request for comment.

Comment: CNN summarizes to date:

- ICE deploys to airports: Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been deployed to 14 airports today to help during the Department of Homeland Security shutdown. The Transportation Security Administration has faced growing callouts from officers who have gone without pay since DHS funding lapsed in February.

- Growing travel woes: Travelers have been dealing with worsening airport wait times, with George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston warning flyers it could take more than four hours to get through. LaGuardia Airport in New York was reopened this afternoon after a fatal collision between an Air Canada plane and a fire truck. Track wait times at major airports here.

- No end to shutdown in sight: There are few signs lawmakers will reach an agreement to fund DHS, which includes TSA, ahead of a scheduled holiday break. President Donald Trump last night rejected a potential off-ramp to end the shutdown, sources told CNN, as he's told Republicans to "only settle" if they can pass a federal elections overhaul bill.