Overview
- The White House directive, issued Friday, instructs Homeland Security to pay TSA workers after weeks without pay dating back to February 14.
- Homeland Security said paychecks could start Monday, yet airports still report hour‑long waits as absences and about 500 resignations strain screening lanes.
- ICE personnel are now assisting at least 14 airports, including JFK, Newark, LaGuardia and Baltimore/Washington, by handling ID checks, crowd control and passenger processing rather than replacing TSA screeners.
- Legal guides and reports describe some airport arrests during the ICE deployments, and advocates urge travelers—especially noncitizens—to carry proof of status and allow extra time for checkpoints.
- The funding fight continues after House Republicans passed a short DHS extension Friday night that Senate Democrats rejected, and union leaders say wait times may take days or weeks to normalize even if pay resumes.