When will ICE leave airports? Tom Homan shares update after TSA pay fix
After a bid to end the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) fell apart in Congress, President Donald Trump on Friday signed a promised executive action to pay Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees. The partial government shutdown that began in February saw over 480 TSA employees leave, and thousands calling out after being forced to work without pay for over a month. The resulting chaos in airports across the country prompted the President to send in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials to help with security.
The President's decision, however, did not go down well with Democratic lawmakers and supporters. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand called it a "recipe for disaster." "ICE agents are not trained or certified in aviation security and have demonstrated an inability to de-escalate situations appropriately," the U.S. Senator from New York said. Notably, despite TSA workers expected to return to work, easing pressure on security checks, ICE will remain in American airports for now.
ICE is proud to stand side by side with our brothers and sisters at @TSA — this is a message we received from the field:
— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) March 29, 2026
“I’m at LaGuardia, we did our training and now there’s no wait time. 99% of travelers are happy we’re here helping!” https://t.co/SGumh3LFRr pic.twitter.com/xwE0OLWZut
"Border Czar" Tom Homan told CBS News that ICE agents would remain in airports till their functioning does not come back to "100%." "If less TSA agents come back, that means we'll keep more ICE agents there," Homan said, adding, "The president has been clear. He wants to secure those airports, especially, as I said earlier, in an increased threat posture, we need to secure those airports. ICE is there to help our brothers and sisters in TSA. We'll be there as long as they need us, until they get back to normal operations and feel like those airports are secure."
Good afternoon. Speaker Johnson was sent a bill to fund TSA, the Coast Guard and FEMA that passed the Senate 100-0. If he had simply called it for a vote it would passed easily.
— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) March 29, 2026
But he chose chaos. Because that’s what Trump wants. Only Johnson can clean up this mess.
Notably, while President Trump’s Friday memorandum will see TSA agents receive their paychecks as early as Monday, it is unclear when the federal agency will resume full operations. Nearly 500 TSA officers have resigned since the shutdown began, and daily call-out rates have peaked at 40% in some hubs. Besides, the move to pay TSA workers has been described by the White House as a "necessary emergency measure," with many lawmakers questioning its long-term stability.
Rep. Roy: "It is Democrats that are blocking bills. The House has passed 4 or 5 bills to fund DHS in its entirety, we've sent it to the Senate, and 5 to 7 Democrats continue to reject that. We're going to stand up with Border Patrol. We're going to stand up with ICE." pic.twitter.com/KufyWwIi41
— Rep. Chip Roy Press Office (@RepChipRoy) March 28, 2026
The temporary TSA pay fix does not end the ongoing DHS shutdown, despite the Senate successfully reaching a bipartisan compromise last week. The deal, which agreed to fund all of DHS except ICE and Border Patrol, collapsed in the House. House Republicans refused to back any legislation without including money for ICE. The House passed a new measure in a 213 to 203 vote late on Friday. The bill will now head back to the Senate for approval, where it is expected to be stalled again.
