type: timeline_event
The partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, which began on February 14, 2026, entered its sixth week on March 22 with no resolution in sight. More than 400 TSA officers had quit since the funding lapse began, with many citing inability to work indefinitely without pay and the erosion of morale across the agency. The departures created staffing shortfalls at security checkpoints nationwide, with wait times at some airports exceeding three hours during peak travel periods.
President Trump announced that ICE agents would be deployed to 13 major airports — including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Chicago O'Hare, John F. Kennedy International, Los Angeles International, and Dallas/Fort Worth — to fill the gaps left by departing TSA personnel. The administration framed the move as a demonstration of "operational flexibility," but aviation security experts and the officers' union rejected the characterization.
AFGE president Everett Kelley condemned the deployment in blunt terms: "Putting untrained personnel at security checkpoints does not fill a gap. It creates one." The union noted that TSA screeners undergo 200 hours of specialized training in explosive detection, passenger screening protocols, and de-escalation techniques — none of which ICE enforcement agents receive. Former TSA administrator David Pekoske warned that the substitution represented "the single greatest degradation of aviation security since September 11th."
The Senate failed its fifth vote to restore DHS funding on the same day, with Republicans insisting that any continuing resolution include full funding for the administration's immigration enforcement priorities and Democrats refusing to pass what they called a "blank check for mass deportation." Acting DHS Secretary Mullin, still awaiting final confirmation, urged Congress to act but declined to criticize the ICE deployment plan.