Light passenger traffic is seen at the security checkpoint for gates A, B and C in Terminal 1 at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Friday, March 20, 2026. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will be moving into U.S. airports starting Monday, March 23, 2026, to help relieve long lines for travelers, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Pedro Portal
pportal@miamiherald.com
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will be moving into U.S. airports starting Monday to help relieve long lines for travelers amid the partial government shutdown, according to Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan.
President Donald Trump announced the plan in a Saturday social media post, stating that ICE agents would be moved into airports to “do Security like no one has ever seen before, including the immediate arrest of all Illegal Immigrants who have come into our Country…”
During a Sunday interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Homan said ICE agents are doing immigration enforcement at airports “all the time,” so the operation will not change anything in that respect.
“This is about helping the men and women of the TSA,” Homan said on the show. “They’ve lost several hundred employees. The lines are really slow because of the shutdown. This is about helping TSA do their mission and getting the American public through that airport as quick as they can while adhering to all the security guidelines and the protocols.”
It remains unclear whether Miami International Airport or Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport will be staffed with ICE agents, and if so, when and in what capacity. As of early Sunday afternoon, MIA had not been notified by TSA or ICE about agents being assigned, spokesperson Greg Chin told the Miami Herald.
Chin directed a reporter to a TSA spokesperson, who didn’t immediately respond. Spokespeople for FLL, the Department of Homeland Security, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement also didn’t immediately respond Sunday to questions from the Herald.
In recent weeks, many United States travelers, including those at MIA, reported longer-than-usual security lines, delays and flight cancellations, as TSA agents have been working without pay since mid-February.
Homan told CNN the plan was still being developed Sunday, but his focus will likely be major airports with longer lines. ICE agents probably won’t be able to assist with airport screening processes because that involves special training, but they can help out with issues such as crowd control, he said.
This is a developing story that may be updated.
