ICE at airports: Trump's troll move backfires

If I were a TSA agent who hasn't been paid in FIVE weeks while these gravy seals prance about in full tactical doing nothing and GETTING PAID for it, I'd call in sick too.

"Siccing a bunch of ICE agents on airports for the obvious purpose of making an already-fraught situation worse may be fun for Trump and his most fanatically right-wing followers. For everyone else, it’s further proof that the so-called hysterical liberals were in fact right all along."

The only upside is now we see their faces

Steve Bannon was saying ICE in airports was a test run for the election. Time and again the only silver lining to this administration’s actions is the incredible ineptitude and incompetence. ICE is untrained, overpaid and incapable of handling even the simplest of tasks and pretending to work. Bringing in ICE costs 10x more than just paying TSA. This is an incredibly effective way to make everyone hates ICE even more, further destroy tourism and highlights republicans inability to budget, plan or think.

This would be a great opportunity to discreetly photograph them, unmasked and with badge numbers visible. We'll need this kind of evidence for the trials.

Delta suspending special services for members of Congress is probably more powerful than anything.

Great line: 'Republicans are already expecting heavy losses in November’s midterm elections, and having a president who is actively making air travel hellish will likely only make it worse. This seems obvious, and yet Trump seems pleased with Linda’s whole “make airports suck for everyone” plan.'

Bullshit. Project 2025, page 159. 1. Starve the TSA until it ‘fails.’ 2. Use ‘force multipliers’ (ICE) to normalize armed enforcement in airports. 3. Push for total privatization to kill the federal union.

The most darkly ironic part about this is that the reason the government is shut down is **because of ICE**. Democrats are demanding common sense reforms… like no more masks… you gotta use actual judicial warrants, not the “administrative” ones where it’s just another ICE agent scribbling “go for it” to his friends, oh and badges. Democrats want agents of the state who are detaining human beings to have to identify themselves. Imagine that. Oh and also, body cameras. So dems want ICE to act like an actual law enforcement agency instead of Trump’s personal mafia, and Republicans said no, so the entire DHS is shut down, and TSA agents have not been paid for over a month now…. And Trump’s big solution? Bolster the trained yet unpaid TSA agents, with wildly overpaid completely untrained ICE agents. This country feels like a f****** circus act.

It's unlikely the USA is going to be a top tourist destination for many for a long time. American airports are unpleasant at the best of times and there is just no way I would want to be in close proximity to these agents who don't seem qualified or experienced enough to deal with large numbers of travellers during chaotic times.

Backfires on who? His popularity? This guy wipe his ass with popularity. This is about conditioning the American people to get used to having ICE in every aspect of your life. Voting. Travel. School. Soon hospitals

I find it really weird that they are all weaponed out. If you were a terrorist, and needed a gun/weapons, wouldn't it be easier to get one off one of these guys vs. trying to get past security with it? Isn't that one of reasons that tsa agents doin't typically carry guns/weapons? Or maybe I'm over thinking it.

They just made a mega thread over at the TSA for all of this drama. Took him a while but it makes sense. The problem is if you say anything negative about ICE (ICE sucks was an example they gave) They're deleting the comment. So if you go over to the TSA sub it's all pro ICE stuff and deleted comments. People are migrating over to the FED employees sub now.

Isn't this like a giant win for the rest of the people? While those morons are playing being useless at airports they are not shooting random citizens in the street for no reason. And if you're a foreigner flying into the US, well... don't? If you're flying for business, do it over the Internet. If you're flying to see your family, it's sad but it's a small sacrifice to make to end Trump's nazi regime.

scabs

Send in the Slave Catchers to keep an eye on all the TSA “employees” that are now working for no pay. What do we call “employees” forced to work for nothing again?

Kinda hard to pretend that ICE isn't Trump's goon squad at this point. Brownshirts

I wonder if Americans stop flying less if the airline execs will take notice and start demanding that their puppet fix this shit. Good on Delta for suspending the special treatment (bad that they helped ice sport people), but we need to hear from more annoyed rich people before Trump will listen.

> The “everyone” aspect of airports is likely part of the psychological dynamic here. Yep. Stick it to the left by f****** over airports for *all* 🤦

Sorry I still can't get over how obese these dudes are. Hegseth is probably furious. All that effort to showcase fit cute guys and now this.

I'm a raging liberal and it would really upset me if ICE started filling potholes in my city streets or opened empty isles at the grocery store checkout. I'd be fuming Mr. President!

The MAGA boys trying to get to a golf trip seemed less than happy when they found themselves stuck in a TSA line this past weekend.

Btw, Trump got the idea from Fox News, and they got the idea from a caller who suggested ICE agents should be in airports.

Like Elon, these clown dicks don't have a clue. 

Looking more like handmaidens tale everyday.

If the TSA dont need machine guns to keep airports safe and secure, why do ICE agents look like they are about to invade Iran? Are they that scared of the average American person that they need to hide like cowards behind their huge guns? Or are they compensating for something else thats small and sad?

This is like that future where Biff wins

My opinion of the TSA has gone up? That’s how awful Trump is

>the MAGA coalition has not been known for its logic >Early reports show ICE is doing nothing to speed up security lines, many of which have [hours-long waits](https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2026/03/23/ice-tsa-airport-security-line-waits/89283422007/) due to Republicans’ refusal to pass a Democratic proposal to fund the TSA directly while still withholding DHS funding. The presence of ICE is instead ratcheting up tensions at the already stress-laden airports

I read that it’s to get the union TSA agents to quit in order to privatize. Take it with a grain of salt.

>Whatever hand-waving Bannon might do to deny the implication — that ICE would intimidate voters into casting their ballots for Republicans or, more likely, staying away from the polls altogether — it’s clear to both his audience and critics. The goal is not to make life easier for anyone, but to make everyday actions like voting or traveling a terrible, if not terrifying, idea. Even with independents, long TSA lines and ICE in airports hardens the resolve to vote Democrat. It doesn't make it terrifying, it makes it necessary. This chaos won't end by itself.

This administration wants TSA agents to quit en mass. So they can privatize one more government service. Wake-up

Meanwhile the wait time at IAH yesterday was approximately the length of all three original Star Wars films played back-to-back, and I’m not joking!

I consider the ICE agents who showed up to basically invalidate the TSA agents concerns scabs. It’s the same as if TSA was striking and these guys crossed the picket line.

It hasn't backfired yet. The GOP is still in power and I have yet to meet a Trump voter wouldn't continue to kiss his ass and vote for him and his cronies again. 

Last week, an apolitical traveler could have been forgiven for asking: "Why should TSA funding be dependent on reforming ICE?" By deploying ICE to airports, Trump has directly linked ICE to the TSA issue. He's showing again how the agency has become his personal political militia. That's better leverage for the Democrats.

I have no love for the TSA in the same way I have no love for the meter maid that tickets my car. They're an annoyance but I understand why they exist. F*** ICE. ICE is a cancer and needs to go.

>The presence of ICE is instead ratcheting up tensions at the already stress-laden airports. Federal immigration officers can’t do the real work of screening passengers, but they can harass and manhandle people suspected of being immigrants. >The message seems to be that if Democrats don’t immediately cave to the GOP, Trump will make airline travel even more miserable for everyone. I hope the democrats hold out this time, tho cuck-schumer is probably salivating at the chance to get a promise out of the gop for a vote or something that will neither help americans nor do anything good for voters.

I bet ICE agents are equally pissed about over priced airport food.

What is the point of this? They can't pass the SAVE act, we've heard reports Trump wants "less visible" confrontations with ICE. What is the actual logic behind this? Who does it benefit?

I'm actually a bit impressed that they stopped wearing masks at the airport.

It doesn't matter how incompetent, pointless or violent they get. It's just to normalize their constant presence in society being used for anything the president can think of. People will grow numb to it and the GOP will continue boiling the frog.

It's another union busting move from the party that hates the working class and its written exactly as this in P2025

How are a bunch of guys in tactical gear intimidating brown people supposed to make the lines go faster?

I was just in Houston and Miami airports. ICE were there and did nothing to help. TSA were stressed and yelling at people. I don't blame them, they haven't been paid in a month and they still turn up to keep things moving. If you are traveling please understand what they are going through. Lines will be long but they are still trying and not getting paid for it.

I love the idea of ICE deployed to the airports because they have to be seen, then interact with the public without the shield of SUVs, masks, pepper spray, etc. instead of faceless storm troopers you have obese, rough, inarticulate people clearly betraying the prestige of a three letter agency. It hurts ICE image to be placed into the daylight illuminated atriums of airports amongst the voting public.

>The idea appears to have started during call-in segments on right-wing radio shows. >This is no exaggeration. >Journalists Ben Smith of Semafor and Brian Stelter of CNN traced the ICE-in-airports idea to “Linda from Arizona,” who called into a D-list conservative radio show hosted by Clay Travis and Buck Sexton on March 20. Both Linda and the hosts were blunt that the goal was not actually helping the Transportation Security Administration run more efficient checkpoints but to trigger the liberals. >“I think it would set their hair on fire,” Linda said, full of glee at the idea. >“Democrats would go absolutely insane,” agreed one of the hosts. Government via 4chan seems to be going swimmingly 🤡

If there is one thing ICE had proved it isn't competent at, it's checking someone's ID.

Over-paid Ice agents standing around doing nothing at all. While the TSA agent is working harder then had to before all while not getting paid. In case anyone didn't know, the Democrats had offered up clean bills to fund the TSA that the Republicans rejected. Also the Republicans have control of all branches of goverment. If the goverment is not running its solely because republicans don't know how to.

ICE isn't allowed to cover their faces, while on assignment in airports... We should be going to the airports and getting photos of all of their faces. ...for the trials, later.

I'm not convinced that bringing ICE into one of the most surveiled environments to work is a great idea. They mess about hassling on the street thats one thing but when there are 10 cameras watching their every action then it will be a disaster. So much money is going to be paid out on settlements related to this idiocy.

The trolls are out in force across social media claiming ICE has been a day one success and now customs takes 2 minutes and ICE agents are helping old ladies carry their luggage and sing sweet lullabies to calm crying in their parents arms. 

The useless fascist goons can mill about aimlessly in airport lobbies. What a waste of money, and such a clear indication of the moral rot in our Administration.

Suggested by Maga Linda from Green Valley AZ. Ya don't say.

people are so excited to rid this entire country of illegal immigrants until they’re the ones getting pulled aside as a United States citizen by a play pretend cop with no formal training.

This is all a coordinated effort to get TSA privatized. It’s all part of Project 25. Musk tweeted he would pay the salaries of the TSA agents. Not out of the kindness of his own heart but planting the seeds of buying the agency.

More stupid playground taunts. Is Trump going to chase AOC around with a booger on his finger next?

“Fraud waste and abuse” lol. Projection always all the time.

I do want every ICE Agent showing their face at an airport to get doxxed to a public list

Since ice is so dysfunctional and full of people that weren't trained, I feel like it would be easy for somebody to just go to the airport and pretend to be one. And if that happens that's obviously a huge security breach. Do they have any identifying identification? Because even the Badges don't have numbers

Epstein files

TSA have to love watching ice agents getting overtime doing nothing.

To quote the article: “It’s unclear why Linda and Clay-and-Buck thought that annoying Democrats would pressure or persuade them to drop their opposition to funding the Department of Homeland Security” The thing is it wasn’t about pressure. It was all about Pwning the Librulz. This is the Core f****** sentiment of the MAGAt cult. They don’t CARE about the real life impacts of the shit they jack off to, as long as it pwns a librul… it’s a win. F****** losers, but their vote counts the same as yours.