An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows A man wearing a New York Mets baseball cap is interviewed at Newark Airport, with text indicating longer security wait times due to a government shutdown, Image 2 shows ICE officers in tactical vests stand in an airport terminal among a crowd of diverse travelers
A soon-to-be beach bum with the most Brooklyn accent over won over the internet with a viral a clip of him saying ICE agents were simply trying to “help” the overwhelmed security lines at airports nationwide.
Chris Scali’s brief interview with News 12 was quickly spread online after he shrugged off lefty criticism of the federal agents’ presence at Newark Liberty International Airport this week.
“Alright, they’re good, they’re here to help. They’re not bothering nobody. As long as they can check my bags and get me on my flight, I’m good to go,” he continued, with a distinctly south Brooklyn brogue. “Right? I want to get to the Bahamas. I want out of here.”
A Brooklyn man said ICE was here to help at Newark Airport. Rapid Response 47
Online denizens went crazy for Scali’s cadence.
“I think stating he was from Brooklyn was not required,” one noted with a smiley face.
“Is it sauce or gravy?” another quipped.
“A, oh somebody get this guy a cannoli! Bravo!” a third cracked.
ICE agents were also on hand at LaGuardia Airport to assist with the hours-long security lines Wednesday.
“I don’t mind them being here because they’re here to help people and keep this line moving,” restaurant manager Mary Bojeng, 25, said as she tried to catch a flight to Tampa.
“I believe, you know, everybody has a right to be here. But no, they’re just here helping and it’s good with me.”
ICE officers at LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post
The show of support comes as Democrats have lambasted ICE’s arrival at airports to help alleviate stress on TSA agents who are working without paychecks due to a partial government shutdown.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani tweeted, “ICE doesn’t belong at our airports,” while Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner claimed ICE was bothering and scaring passengers.
Hundreds of TSA workers have quit while many more have called out sick, leading to unusually long security lines at major airports.
Scali’s interview was even shared by the Trump administration’s Rapid Response account on X and other supporters of the White House.
Congress has been at a standstill over fully funding the Department of Homeland Security, which covers TSA, over Senate Democrats’ insistence that reforms be made to immigration enforcement.
Wait times persisted at LaGuardia as travelers were told by staff at Terminal B on Wednesday afternoon that they would need to trudge along for up to three hours. At one point, the line trailed out to the parking garage and airport staff was rolling out cases of water on dollies to hand out.
Security line at Terminal B at LaGuardia. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post
The callout rate for TSA agents on Tuesday was a shocking 11.14%, according to the latest available figures provided by the agency.
The rate at John F. Kennedy Airport was 36.8% while LaGuardia’s was 17.1%.
William P. Hobby Airport had the highest callout rate at 43% followed by George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport at rates of 39.8%, 36.6% and 35.6% on Tuesday, according to TSA.
One flyer who travels a lot said at LaGuardia Wednesday morning the lines were still the “worst I’ve seen in my life.”
“It’s all politics and I got to say they’re not building any goodwill with the people, at least the people who have been in an airport,” said Erik Brazil, 56, who was going home to California with his wife and 6-year-old daughter.