White House border czar Tom Homan said Sunday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel will begin assisting at airports but will not take on passenger screening duties, even as the effort ramps up to support strained Transportation Security Administration (TSA) operations.

Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Homan made clear that ICE agents will not be assigned to operate X-ray machines or conduct screenings. “Wherever we can provide extra security, I don’t see an ICE agent looking at an X-ray machine, because we’re not trained in that,” he told host Dana Bash.

Instead, he explained that ICE officers will step into other roles currently handled by TSA staff, allowing trained screeners to focus on their core responsibilities. “But there are certain parts of security that TSA is doing that we can move them off those jobs, and put them in the specialized jobs to help move those lines,” he added.

Earlier Sunday, President Trump announced on Truth Social that ICE agents would begin assisting TSA starting Monday, with Homan overseeing the effort. Homan said he is working alongside acting ICE Director Todd Lyons and acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill to finalize the details. “We’ll have a plan by the end of today,” he said, adding that the strategy remains a “work in progress” and should focus first on airports experiencing the longest wait times.

The move comes as the partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security approaches its 40th day, with TSA staffing shortages continuing to disrupt operations. A growing number of TSA employees have been calling out, leading to extended lines at airports across the country.

Some major hubs, including Philadelphia International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, have been forced to shut down certain security checkpoints due to insufficient staffing.

According to a statement released Tuesday by Lauren Bis, acting assistant secretary of DHS, 366 TSA officers have left their positions since the shutdown began on Feb. 15. Workers received only partial pay late last month and went without pay entirely last week.

With ICE now stepping in to help, Homan emphasized that agents are already familiar with airport environments. “ICE agents are assigned at many airports across the country already,” he told Bash. “They do a lot of investigation, criminal investigation on smuggling at airports. But you got TSA agents covering exits, people that enter through the exits.”

He added that ICE officers could take over tasks like monitoring airport exits to prevent unauthorized entry, freeing TSA personnel to return to screening duties. “Certainly, a highly trained ICE law enforcement officer can cover an exit and makes sure people don’t go through those exits, entering the airport through the exits,” he said. “And stuff like that relieves that TSA officer to go to screening and to reduce those lines.”

Homan’s remarks appeared to differ from comments made by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who suggested that ICE agents may assist with screening-related functions. “They run those same type of security machines at the southern border, right?” Duffy said Sunday. “Packages come through or people come through. They run similar assets.”

“We have ICE agents who are trained and can provide assistance to agents,” he continued, adding that they would also help address long wait times.

In a separate interview on “Fox News Sunday,” Homan reiterated that ICE’s primary role will be to relieve TSA agents from secondary duties such as guarding exits, allowing them to focus on passenger screening.

The Hill has reached out to TSA, ICE, and the Department of Transportation for clarification on the scope of ICE’s involvement.

Homan also noted that ICE already conducts immigration enforcement at airports on a regular basis, and that aspect of its work will continue unchanged. However, he stressed that the current deployment is specifically intended to support TSA staff during the ongoing staffing crisis.

“This is about helping the men and women at TSA,” Homan said.

{Matzav.com}