Tensions between the US and Iran increase, as the standoff over TSA funding continues. The US military conducted a strike on a drug boat in the Caribbean Sea. Meanwhile, the EPA approves higher ethanol fuel sales, and Congress debates a Republican proposal for funding TSA amidst potential airport closures due to unpaid workers.
Iran and the US harden their positions as Tehran keeps its grip on the Strait of HormuzStrike on alleged drug boat kills 4 in the Caribbean Sea, US military saysEPA approves sale of higher ethanol fuel to try to lower gas prices Senators are expected to vote Thursday on a Republican proposal that would fund the Transportation Security Administration and much of theDemocrats argue the GOP plan does not go far enough at putting guardrails on ICE, Customs and Border Protection and other federal officers who are engaged in the Trump administration’s immigration sweeps, particularly after the With Congress set to leave town by week’s end for its own spring break recess, calls are intensifying for an end to the 41-day stalemate that’s put the livelihoods of TSA officers at risk as they provide airport security without pay.
facing unpaid TSA workers — piling up bills and eviction notices, even plasma donations to make ends meet — and warned of potential airport closures if more employees refuse to come to work. Daily callout rates have increased to 11% nationwide. “At this point, we have to look at all options on the table,” she said. “And that does require us to, at some point, make very difficult choices as to which airports we might try to keep open and which ones we might have to shut down as our callout rates increase.”The Republican president has largely stayed out of the public debate over the path his party should take to end the standoff. Trump initially signed off on the plan the GOP senators brought to him late Monday, but on Tuesday he said he wouldn’t be happy with any deal. Trump didn’t directly address the status of negotiations late Wednesday evening during an annual fundraising dinner for the House Republicans’ campaign committee as Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., works to keep majority control of the chamber in the November midterm elections.that Trump signed into law last year funneled billions to the Department of Homeland Security, including $75 billion for ICE operations, ensuring the money is flowing for his immigration and deportation agenda even with the routine department funding shutdown. ICE and other immigration officers are still being paid. The situation is partly of Trump’s making, a strategy the president put in place last fall, when he cut a deal with Democrats to end a previous federal shutdown. At that time, Trump agreed to fund the federal government, except for Homeland Security, which was then put on temporary funding that has expired. Passengers wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Houston. Passengers wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Houston. Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill, left, testifies as Nicholas Andersen, acting director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, right, listens during a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Washington. Passengers wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Houston. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. Passengers wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Houston. Passengers wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Houston. While the Republican offer added one new restraint on immigration officers, funding the use of body cameras that had previously been agreed to, it excluded other policies that Democrats have demanded — such as that federal agents wear identification, remove their face masks and refrain from conducting raids around schools, churches or other sensitive places. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said they needed to see real changes. “We’ve been talking about ICE reforms from day one,” he said. Democrats had been in several days of talks with the White House, including with border czar Tom Homan, that appeared to be making progress toward a deal. The White House presented its own offer with several items Democrats had been demanding, including officer IDs and training.Republicans say Democrats are putting the country at risk. They say the Trump administration has already made strides to meet Democrats’ demands and has shown a new approach to its immigration operations, swearing in Markwayne Mullin as the new Homeland Security secretary to replace Kristi Noem.But conservative Republicans also panned the proposal, demanding full funding for immigration operations and skeptical of the promise from GOP leaders that they would address Trump’s proof-of-citizenship Senate Majority Leader John Thune said late Wednesday that if Democrats put a “more realistic offer on the table, we’ll be back in business.” Asked if Congress would consider a stopgap measure to temporarily fund the department, Thune said: “We’ll see.”McNeill, the acting TSA administrator, told lawmakers that multiple airports are experiencing greater than 40% callout rates and more than 480 transportation security officers have now quit during the shutdown.“Some are sleeping in their cars, selling their blood and plasma, and taking on second jobs to make ends meet, all while being expected to perform at the highest level when in uniform to protect the traveling public,” she said. McNeil also said TSA officers working at the nation’s airports have experienced a more than 500% increase in the frequency of assaults since the shutdown began.Associated Press writers Wyatte Grantham-Philips in New York, Rio Yamat in Las Vegas, Russ Bynum in Houston and Gabriela Aoun Angueira in San Diego contributed to this report.How DIA keeps TSA security lines at 12 minutes as other airports see hours-long wait timesDenver Water enacts Stage 1 drought restrictions for the first time since 2013Sheridan School District teachers plan to go on strike next weekNew wildfire burning east of I-25 in southern Colorado
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