President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he will sign an order to pay Transportation Security Administration officers who have gone without paychecks during the funding lapse at the Department of Homeland Security.
Trump said on Truth Social that he would instruct newly sworn-in Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to “immediately pay our TSA Agents in order to address this Emergency Situation.”
TSA officers missed their first full paychecks in mid-March, leading many to call out of work. Callout rates for TSA officers have exceeded 11% nationally, with rates at some airports passing 40%.
The high call-out rates have led to lines at some airports taking more than four hours. Trump sent ICE agents to airports to help TSA earlier this week. Unlike TSA officers, ICE agents continue to receive paychecks during the partial shutdown as a result of funding from the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill that Trump signed into law last year.
Travelers wait in line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on March 19.Antranik Tavitian / Getty Images
The Senate has repeatedly failed to advance a House-passed bill that would fund DHS for a full year. Democrats have opposed the bill as they demand changes to Immigration and Customs Enforcement following the surge of immigration officers in Minneapolis and the killings of two U.S. citizens by federal officers there this year.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement earlier Thursday that the Trump administration was having discussions “about a number of ideas” to improve conditions in airports, as TSA says it is facing the longest security wait times in history.
“It is true that the White House is having discussions about a number of ideas to blunt the impact of the Democrat shutdown crisis, but no preparations or plans are currently underway. The best and easiest way to pay TSA Agents is to fund DHS,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt’s statement seemed to stave off a potential unanimous consent push from Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who had said Thursday morning he was considering bringing up a bill to solely fund TSA — an idea Democrats were quick to support.
The possibility of the executive branch’s funding TSA through administrative means came up in discussions among Senate Republicans on Thursday.
Asked whether Trump could declare a national emergency to pay TSA officers, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said, “Well, the president has the authority, so we’ll see what happens.”
While senators had already cast votes on advancing the bill, the Senate vote remained open to allow for negotiations Thursday, when Trump made his announcement on Truth Social. A GOP leadership aide had told reporters that once the vote closes, it would be up to the White House to decide what the options for paying TSA are.
Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., shook his head and said “no” when reporters asked him Thursday after he left Senate Republican leader John Thune’s office whether senators were making progress on a deal.
The Senate is set to depart Friday for a two-week recess. Thune, R-S.D., has said it remains an open question whether he will keep lawmakers in town if they don’t reach a deal on DHS funding.
