Travelers have noticed ICE agents working at Dulles International Airport and Reagan National Airport, WTOP and Fox5DC report. President Donald Trump ordered that immigration officers be deployed to several airports around the country. The move is in response to long securing lines due to a partial government shutdown.
TSA agents have remained unpaid throughout the shutdown. Many have called in sick or quit, The Associated Press reported. As a result, several airports around the country have reported unusually long lines at security.
White House Border Czar Tom Homan has said that ICE agents at airports will assist with simple tasks, such as monitoring exits. Their help is intended to free up TSA agents to focus on specialized security work.
According to a statement from Lauren Bis, DHS acting assistant secretary for public affairs, ICE officers received standard TSA training curriculum and are now “guarding entrances and exits, assisting with logistics, doing crowd control, and verifying identification using TSA equipment and standard operating procedures.”
“The more support we have available, the more efficiently TSA can focus on their highly specialized screening roles to efficiently get airport security lines moving faster,” Bis said.
WTOP reported that about a dozen ICE agents were seen late Tuesday morning at the main terminal of Dulles. About two dozen Department of Homeland Security police officers were also at Dulles. Fox5DC reported seeing ICE agents at Reagan.
Agents have also been deployed to airports in Atlanta, New York, Newark, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and more, Reuters reported.
According to a representative from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, Dulles and Reagan have not experienced any major operational changes or increased wait times. Before heading to the airport, travelers can check anticipated wait times at Reagan online.
Feature image, stock.adobe.com
