President Trump’s border czar said that ICE agents will likely not be leaving airports any time soon.
The ICE agents were deployed because of an ongoing budget standoff between Republicans and Democrats. The standoff has led to TSA agents not being paid for several weeks, causing absenteeism and record-long lines at airports.
“We’re going to continue an ICE presence there, and until the airports feel like they’re in 100%, you know, in a posture where they can do normal operations,” Homan said in an interview on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “So if less TSA agents come back, that means we’ll keep more ICE agents there.”
In an interview with CNN, Homan said even after pay resumes for TSA agents, there might still be an ICE presence at airports because of the loss of agents. “It depends how many TSA agents come back to work, how many TSA agents have actually quit and have no plan of coming back to work. I’m working very closely with TSA administrator and the ICE director to decide what airport needs what,” he said.
Democrats have refused to approve funding for the Department of Homeland Security without reforms related to ICE and border patrol. Democrats demanded the reforms – such as banning federal agents from wearing masks – after the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota during immigration enforcement operations.
Last week, the Senate approved a deal that would pay the TSA agents and would fund all of DHS except for immigration enforcement agencies. The Democrats agree to, essentially, separate out their reform demands from the funding of other areas of DHS.
The Senate deal was rejected by House Speaker Michael Johnson. Instead, Johnson put forward a different bill in the House which would restore DHS funding temporarily, NBC News reported. That bill passed along party lines, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he would not call it for a vote because it had no chance of passing.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the Republican House bill would be “dead on arrival” in the Senate.
“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,” Schumer said, according to NBC News.
The TSA agents should begin receiving paychecks after Trump issued an executive order last week. “Therefore, I am going to sign an Order instructing the Secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin, to immediately pay our TSA Agents in order to address this Emergency Situation, and to quickly stop the Democrat Chaos at the Airports. It is not an easy thing to do, but I am going to do it!” Trump wrote.
Trump’s executive order is a temporary fix to the issue. The order states that DHS should “use funds that have a reasonable and logical nexus to TSA operations to provide TSA employees” with compensation and benefits.
“Once regular funding for TSA has been restored, every effort should be made, as authorized by law, to adjust applicable funding accounts within DHS to ensure the continuation of DHS operations and activities consistent with planned expenditures prior to the lapse,” the order states.
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