Donald Trump has threatened to deploy ICE agents to U.S. airports this Monday if Democrats do not agree to measures that are aimed at strengthening DHS’s security and immigration enforcement.
Trump took his threats to Truth Social this Saturday morning where he wrote, “If the Radical Left Democrats don’t immediately sign an agreement to let our Country, in particular, our Airports, be FREE and SAFE again, I will move our brilliant and patriotic ICE Agents to the Airports where they will do Security like no one has ever seen before, including the inner arrest of all illegal immigrants…”
While both the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) fall under the Department of Homeland Security, they both have separate roles and assignments. It is unclear what function ICE would perform as they’re not trained in airport security.
Donald Trump’s online remarks came after Democrats blocked a DHS funding bill, failing its advancement in the Senate.
Next week, TSA workers could miss their second full paycheck as lawmakers continue to feud over the resolution of the partial government shutdown. This has led to a growing number of TSA agents calling out of work or leaving their job altogether as many cite financial struggles.