450 TSA officers quit amid 38-day government shutdown staffing crisis
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As the Senate weighs new paths forward Tuesday to end the 38-day government shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security blasts Democrats for “putting the safety, reliability and convenience of our air travel at risk.”
The airport chaos of the first travel weekend of spring subsided in Transportation Security Administration lines at some major hubs in Atlanta, House and New Orleans, but Acting Deputy Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News that more than 3,200 TSA employees called in during their Monday shift and more than 450 TSA agents quit their jobs altogether.
“Day 38 of the Democratic shutdown: American travelers face hours-long waits at airports across the country and more than 450 TSA agents have quit and thousands have called in sick because they can’t afford gas, child care, food or rent,” Bis said in a statement.
Notably, President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to the hardest-hit airports has been credited with easing some of the TSA security delays that reached a maximum of nine hours in Atlanta.
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Atlanta airport security lines were among the longest in the country, at the world’s busiest air hub. (Fox 5 Atlanta)
A Fox News report from the scene said security lines were minimal Tuesday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, widely known as the busiest airport in the world. Additionally, a video on social media praised ICE agents in Houston handing out water to travelers waiting in long lines.
“As Democrats continue to endanger the safety, reliability, and ease of our air travel, President Trump is taking action to deploy hundreds of ICE officers, currently funded by Congress, to affected airports,” the Bis statement added.
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“This will help strengthen TSA’s efforts to keep our skies secure and minimize disruptions to air travel.”
Some critics note that the easing of security lines Tuesday was due to lighter weekday travel compared to the first Sunday of spring, a notoriously busy travel period due to spring break.
Sunday’s TSA agent response rate peaked at its highest closure rate on Sunday (11.6% nationally), according to DHS data shared with Fox News.
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But response rates are not equal nationally, with Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans topping DHS rankings among the top 10 airport response rates.
- HOU 40.3% (Houston)
- ATL 37.4% (Atlanta)
- AHI 36.1% (Houston)
- MSY 34.9% (New Orleans)
- JFK 33.7% (New York)
- IBW 30.4% (Baltimore)
- PIT 27.5% (Pittsburgh
- LGA 20.3% (New York)
- PHL 19.7% (Philadelphia)
- PHX 19.3% (Phoenix)
DHS funding remains under pressure from a forced government shutdown by Democrats, the second this fiscal year. Democrats have made Trump the most closed-minded president ever.
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Trump has sent ICE agents to troubled airports, while negotiating a potential deal to fund DHS — although he is leaving out ICE funding because it is currently under review on Capitol Hill.
