WASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to U.S. airports if congressional Democrats do not immediately agree to fund airport safety.
“I will move our brilliant and patriotic ICE Agents to the Airports where they will do Security like no one has ever seen before,” Trump wrote in a social media post.
Transportation Security Administration personnel are set to miss a second full paycheck on March 27 amid a partial government shutdown now in its 36th day as lawmakers clash over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency for TSA and ICE.
TSA officers have called in sick in recent weeks as paychecks have dried up. The shortage of security agents has led to travel disruptions at major airports.
ICE agents are not specifically trained for airport security, which is TSA’s domain. ICE has played a central role in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, drawing criticism from many Democrats, civil liberties advocates and immigration advocacy groups.
The agency, along with Customs and Border Protection, has deployed agents over the past few months to multiple areas as part of the crackdown, most recently to Minnesota in an operation that resulted in agents fatally shooting American citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
Their deaths sparked a backlash and led the Trump administration to adopt a more targeted approach in Minnesota.
Trump this month fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem amid growing criticism of the administration’s immigration tactics. The U.S. Senate is considering the nomination of Senator Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican, as the next DHS secretary.
Trump has said his immigration policies are intended to curb illegal immigration and improve national security.
Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union said TSA had provided lists of airport travelers to ICE, calling the move a break from TSA’s prior practices.
(Reporting by Jason Lange and Mike Scarcella.Editing by Rod Nickel and Sergio Non)
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