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Travelers at the Washington region’s three major airports saw no visible presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers Monday, the first day of a White House plan to use immigration personnel to help ease airport screening delays during the partial government shutdown.
At Dulles International Airport, no ICE officers were observed in public areas of the terminal Monday morning. Roughly six to eight Department of Homeland Security police officers circulated through the airport alongside the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police Department’s regular staff.
ICE officers also were not seen at Reagan National Airport or BWI Marshall Airport. At BWI, however, Security Checkpoint A remained closed early Monday while all other TSA checkpoints reported routine waits. Airport officials warned that conditions could change.
The situation followed announcements by President Donald Trump and White House border czar Tom Homan that immigration officers would be sent to some U.S. airports to assist TSA employees facing long lines. A handful of federal officers were spotted early Monday near crowded checkpoints at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
The Department of Homeland Security would not say whether ICE personnel were scheduled to deploy at Dulles.
“President Trump is using every tool available to help American travelers who are facing hours long lines at airports across the country — especially during this spring break and holiday season that is very important for many American families,” Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said.
Bis said later Monday that the department would not disclose officers’ locations for operational security reasons.
Homan said Sunday that ICE personnel would handle supporting duties while trained TSA employees continued operating screening technology.
Passengers at Dulles offered sharply different reactions to the plan. One traveler who arrived early because of uncertainty about security lines said ICE officers could provide useful support, even if TSA employees were more qualified to operate screening equipment.
Another passenger said immigration officers could help manage crowds and airport logistics. A traveler headed to San Juan, Puerto Rico, was less convinced, describing the plan as a small temporary response to a much larger problem.
One woman said she would rather see TSA employees paid than have ICE officers deployed to airports. She questioned what meaningful assistance they could provide and said their presence could make travelers uncomfortable.
Hundreds of thousands of Homeland Security employees—including workers at the TSA, Secret Service and Coast Guard—have gone without pay since Congress failed to renew department funding last month. The growing financial pressure has contributed to TSA employees calling out sick or leaving their jobs.
Those staffing shortages have forced some airports to close checkpoints temporarily and caused passenger wait times to fluctuate dramatically.