Long TSA lines at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport come as the White House proposes sending ICE agents to assist with security operations. Officials say the agents would take on support roles, but a Houston legal expert explains the limits of what ICE can legally do and why they cannot replace TSA officers.
Long security lines at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Sunday are now part of a much bigger national conversation.As travelers faced hours-long waits at Bush Airport, the Trump administration announced a plan to send ICE agents to help at airports dealing with TSA staffing shortages.
White House border czar Tom Homan said those agents could begin arriving as soon as Monday and would be used in support roles rather than full screening positions.The move comes as TSA workers continue dealing with staffing shortages tied to the Department of Homeland Security funding standoff, which has contributed to major delays at several airports, including Houston. Tom Homan said Sunday that ICE agents would not be used to perform specialized TSA screening duties like reading X-rays. Instead, he said they could help with tasks such as maintaining exit lanes and checking identification before passengers enter screening areas, freeing up TSA officers for screening work.FOX 26 Senior Legal Analyst Chris Tritico told FOX 26 the president likely cannot make ICE agents permanent replacements for TSA officers. But Tritico said a short-term emergency redeployment to support TSA could be legally defensible while the funding situation continues.Tritico said the distinction matters because TSA officers and ICE agents are trained for different jobs. He said any order simply turning ICE agents into TSA agents would raise legal concerns.At Bush Airport, Sunday wait times stretched to nearly four hours at some checkpoints as reduced TSA staffing continued to impact airport operations.It is still unclear which airports will actually see ICE agents arrive on Monday. It is also not yet clear exactly how many ICE agents would be sent to each airport, how quickly they would be in place, or how much immediate impact they would have on wait times. Homan described the operation as still being finalized Sunday.Another open question is how long any temporary redeployment could last if the DHS funding fight continues. Tritico said the short-term legal argument is tied to the emergency nature of the current situation, not a permanent restructuring of airport security.Homan said ICE agents could be used as a "force multiplier" by stepping into duties that do not require TSA’s specialized screening training. In his interview, he said ICE agents could help relieve pressure on TSA officers and move travelers through checkpoints more quickly.Tritico, however, said there is a clear legal difference between supporting TSA and replacing TSA. He said ICE may be able to help in the short term, but not serve as a permanent substitute for TSA officers.For travelers in Houston, the biggest issue Sunday was the same one playing out at airports across the country: long waits and limited staffing. The administration says ICE agents may be part of the answer, but legal and logistical questions remain about how far that support can go.
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