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General Mar 23, 2026 at 6:06 PM

Federal immigration agents deployed to Southwest Florida International Airport

Posted by wei-long


https://www.wgcu.org/top-story/2026-03-23/federal-immigration-agents-deployed-to-southwest-florida-international-airport

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46 Comments

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mrdominoe Mar 23, 2026 +398
"Hey TSA! Hope you enjoy working alongside the reason you aren't getting funding!"
398
whatproblems Mar 23, 2026 +165
also they’re getting overpaid while you starve
165
henryptung Mar 23, 2026 +128
Democrats literally offered to fund DHS (minus ICE and CBP, which were already fattened in 2025) and the GOP refused; now it's clear that Trump is the one holding funding hostage so he can screw with mail-in voting and set up a premise for meddling in the midterms.
128
auntie_ Mar 24, 2026 +8
I know you’re just being glib but the SAVE Act is so much worse than screwing with mail in voting. Every woman you know who has changed her name would be disenfranchised.
8
Wayofchinchilla Mar 23, 2026 +17
I'm sure they're going to love being talked down to by the uneducated and overpaid.
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Boring-Research410 Mar 24, 2026 +2
You mean like every person who has ever interacted with LE in any capacity??
2
jefbenet Mar 24, 2026 +5
Almost as if the push to send ICE had absolutely nothing to do with assisting TSA in their efforts.
5
seedless0 Mar 23, 2026 +131
Why do they need bulletproof vests for the job?
131
grimeflea Mar 23, 2026 +113
Guns aren’t allowed at airports so they’re scared people will throw bullets at them.
113
sergei-rivers Mar 23, 2026 +30
I mean, those footlong subs can be lethal.
30
Kafkas7 Mar 23, 2026 +15
Who’s throwing airport food? It’s like 20$ footlongs
15
O_PLUTO_O Mar 24, 2026 +1
Throwing food? In *this* economy?
1
greatthebob38 Mar 23, 2026 +12
I thought they also weren't supposed to be armed yet I see guns at their hips in the news thumbnail.
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RottenPingu1 Mar 24, 2026 +3
Exemptions in 3, 2, 1...
3
LiquidAether Mar 23, 2026 +17
They're pathetic little cowards.
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blankvoidoid Mar 23, 2026 +4
All part of the cosplay
4
willstr1 Mar 23, 2026 +2
Because they are massive cowards
2
SideburnSundays Mar 24, 2026 +1
Gender affirming care.
1
fxkatt Mar 23, 2026 +194
>*At Atlanta’s airport, ICE officers wearing tactical vests carried handguns holstered on their hips. At least one had what appeared to be a short-barreled, assault-style rifle slung across his chest.* Intimidation. They just look at the long lines and do nothing except occasionally patrol the terminals to instill fear.
194
DogsAreOurFriends Mar 23, 2026 +37
Or instill contempt.
37
Brosephus_Maximus Mar 23, 2026 -102
So they look like the standard/typical police at the airport. Got it.
-102
Hadrian23 Mar 23, 2026 +47
Since when are normal police Masked up like they're about to steal the deceleration of Independence...?
47
AuroraFinem Mar 23, 2026 +30
Idk what airports you normally go to, but I fly for work all the time and no, airport police do not wear this kind of gear. They wear a basic uniform not combat vests and they have a basic kit not a long arm rifle slung around their shoulder with a vest that looks like the kid in middle school wearing khakis with 10 different pockets filled of stuff.
30
Ok_Situation6408 Mar 23, 2026 -5
Hartsfield regularly has Atlanta PD with rifles like that. I'm actually not sure that I can recall any visit in my adult life there that didn't include seeing at least one APD with a rifle slung. Unless there is a photo going around that I haven't seen yet, which of course is totally possible, the photo being shared online of an "ICE officer with a rifle" that is mentioned in this article is actually an Atlanta PD officer and the patch on his sleeve confirms it. Not saying that I agree with this development of ICE being used at airports, or defending it - to be clear. I just wanted to share info as someone whose home airport happens to be ATL.
-5
AuroraFinem Mar 24, 2026 +6
I’ve never flown through Hartsfield, but I connect through Atlanta (ATL) a lot going to the Midwest or northeast from Austin and at least past the security checkpoint I’ve never seen any rifles, but I’ve never had to leave the terminal so I can’t say for the security area near the entrance. I’ve never seen it in any airport I’ve actually gone through security in though and never in the terminal area, so maybe there are some that do, I haven’t been to every US airport obviously, I’ve just never seen them, and given the variety of airports in different areas of the US I’ve gone through; middle of nowhere NC, Michigan, Ohio, NYC, Texas, CA, etc… I wouldn’t call it “standard/typical” personally.
6
Ok_Situation6408 Mar 24, 2026 +1
Okay that's what I was expecting you to probably say (that you'd connected there but not exited or entered the main entrances)...that makes a difference in experiences, for sure. So the guy with the rifle today was out at near baggage claim (outside of the security area). I've never seen one inside the terminals, but they are typically out there (usually will see at least one K-9 unit, too) in that area. Idk if they are like a special team from APD or what, but they wear dark green and vests and there is usually at least one with a rifle. Never personally noticed one anywhere else that I can recall, either, but it is definitely a typical sight at Hartsfield.
1
AuroraFinem Mar 24, 2026 +3
I’ve been in many different airports that weren’t just transfers, I just don’t have any other Georgia/Atlanta experiences and only flown into Miami for Florida so don’t know the other airports like the one from the article. I have seen K-9 units before at various airports, though I’ll also say it’s pretty rare that I’ve actually seen them, K-9 units are typically allocated outside public areas where checked bags are being processed or near customs check-in because they don’t serve much purpose for domestic flights other than flagging checked bags, especially with the decreased attention payed to weed. Never seen them with riffles of any kind, but they do usually have a slightly different uniform or standard vest (not tactical ones like in the picture) that flags them as K-9 rather than regular police.
3
alpha-delta-echo Mar 23, 2026 +10
Not even close.
10
mynamejeff-97 Mar 23, 2026 +3
Somebody get this man a vest and some bubble wrap.
3
poorbeans Mar 23, 2026 +43
So, they don't always wear masks..interesting.
43
brazendynamic Mar 23, 2026 +23
Hope we're getting lots of photos of these unmasked sociopaths. Maybe in the future it'll help.
23
Bizarrebazaars Mar 23, 2026 +27
Fat Neo-Nazi chodes standing around doing nothing but intimidate and get paid while TSA agents continue to work around the clock unpaid, belittled, and hated by most travelers. So fucked up I can’t even….
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Ok_Replacement4702 Mar 23, 2026 +36
At least pick up trash while you're there Like the National Guard did
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RVAteach Mar 23, 2026 +10
When all you have is a hammer, everything is a nail 
10
MainSailFreedom Mar 23, 2026 +7
I’m sure non-English speaking tourist are gonna get treated correctly /s
7
dehydratedrain Mar 24, 2026 +1
Trump himself said [Airports are fertile territory for ICE](https://m.youtube.com/shorts/0_pPM6pe5gk)
1
Jae_Rides_Apes Mar 23, 2026 +16
Haven’t seen confirmation here in Denver yet, but it’s hard to imagine being a blue immigration state that also has some of the highest flight traffic in the country we won’t be seeing them soon. -_-
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jimtow28 Mar 23, 2026 +18
It really all depends on what Grok tells them to do.
18
AJEDIWITHNONAME Mar 24, 2026 +1
Well f***. Good luck. My cousin is flying out of Denver this week to visit me. Hope things don’t escalate for you too.
1
rizzlybear_93 Mar 24, 2026 +3
I fly out of SWFL a couple times a year, living in Atlanta and Denver it's a ghost town compared to those airports. 
3
Additional_Quiet2600 Mar 24, 2026 +1
Just standing around. How helpful.
1
BigJellyfish1906 Mar 24, 2026 +1
Standing around doing nothing and getting paid while the TSA is continuing to work understaffed and without pay.
1
BoosterRead78 Mar 24, 2026 +1
They are busy eating at the food courts and holding their vests for some reason.
1
Nyrfan2017 Mar 24, 2026 +1
Just remember how many excutive orders been given to benifit certain people why won’t a excutive order be used to pay tsa? 
1
Mainetaco Mar 26, 2026 +1
We're at war, let's have a bunch of untrained people who don't want to be there team up with a few unpaid and angry agents screen for bombs. Failure of leadership.
1
No_Introduction_3542 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Abolish ICE and the TSA too, and DHS!
1
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