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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will remain at airports “as long as they need us,” border czar Tom Homan has said, adding that paychecks for Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staff will arrive early this week too.
In an interview with CBS on Sunday, Homan said ICE agents will continue to help airport staff until their presence isn’t needed.
“We’ll be there as long as they need us, until they get back to normal operations and feel like those airports are secure,” Homan said.
He also confirmed an earlier Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statement that paychecks for TSA staff will be paid as early as Monday.
“It’s good news because these TSA officers are struggling, they can’t feed their families or pay their rent,” Homan continued.
“We’re talking about the Department of Homeland Security in a time we have a heightened threat posture in this country because of what is going on in the world. This should be the last thing they are fighting over funding for.”
The ongoing DHS shutdown is now the longest in US history.
On Sunday, the shutdown entered its 44th day, breaking the previous record set by the shutdown in the fall of 2025.
Republicans and Democrats have pointed the finger of blame at each other.
One of the main sticking points remains funding for immigration enforcement, which the Democrats refuse to endorse.
On Friday, the House passed a stopgap bill to fund the DHS for 60 days, and the bill was sent to the Senate.
The Senate, however, is now on a two-week recess.
The short-term bill to fund the DHS in its entirety passed the House after Speaker Mike Johnson rejected a bill that would have funded everything except immigration enforcement.
“We hope that someday Democrats finally come to their senses again and put the safety of American citizens first but we’re not holding our breath,” Johnson said during a press conference on Saturday.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he would not support the bill that passed the House on Friday night.
“A 60 day CR that locks in the status quo is dead on arrival in the Senate, and Republicans know it,” Schumer wrote on X.
“We’ve been clear from day one: Democrats will fund critical Homeland Security functions—but we will not give a blank check to Trump’s lawless and deadly immigration militia without reforms.”
The shutdown has caused chaos at the nation’s airports, with huge queues forming as fewer TSA staff have been available.
In response, President Trump deployed ICE agents to airports to help TSA workers.
🚨RED ALERT: Trump Has Been Set Up By The NeoCons!!!
