President Trump sends ICE agents to assist TSA with airport delays
President Donald Trump sent ICE agents to assist the TSA as wait times at airports skyrocketed due to the partial government shutdown.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents may be present at Chicago airports starting Monday, March 23, according to President Donald Trump’s recent announcement.
The president said Immigration and Customs Enforcement will support understaffed Transportation Security Administration agents as the partial shutdown continues, although some details are still unclear.
Here’s what travelers passing through Chicago should know about their rights.
Are ICE agents at Chicago O’Hare or Midway airports?
The Trump administration has not yet announced which airports it will send personnel to or how many employees will be involved.
White House Border Patrol official Tom Homan said in a March 22 interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” that the operation was a “work in progress,” but said he expected a plan to be finalized by the end of Sunday. He added that ICE should prioritize airports with “high wait times” that impact travelers.
USA TODAY Network has reached out to the Chicago Department of Aviation but has not yet heard back.
However, CBS News Chicago confirmed Monday morning that ICE agents were at O’Hare and said the alleged agent was seen by TSA agents at baggage claim.
What do ICE agents do at the airport?
Homan said ICE officers will not be manning the X-ray machines, but will continue to perform immigration duties while assisting with other tasks. The specific mission has not yet been revealed.
“There’s a role we can play in relieving TSA officers from non-essential roles, such as guarding exits and returning to screening machines so we can move people around faster,” Homan said. “We’re just helping our fellow TSA employees.”
What are the rights of American citizens in airport security?
For U.S. citizens, airport security checkpoints remain primarily governed by administrative inspection regulations rather than criminal law enforcement.
Travelers must present identification and follow TSA screening procedures when boarding the plane. But legal experts note that citizens generally have the right to remain silent when questioned by law enforcement, including ICE officers, beyond basic identification in certain circumstances.
If stopped, passengers only need to answer routine questions about the nature of their trip and verify their identity. However, according to the ACLU’s Know Your Rights Guide, if you refuse to have your phone searched, you could be subject to detention and further testing.
Importantly, ICE officers do not have unrestricted authority to detain or interrogate U.S. citizens without cause. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures. This means that prolonged detention and invasive interrogation usually require reasonable suspicion or probable cause. Travelers’ rights are weakened within 100 miles of the U.S. border, subject to warrantless searches to some extent. Past incidents, including cases in which U.S. citizens were wrongly detained by immigration authorities, have raised concerns about overreach.
What are the rights of residents and non-citizens at airports?
Legal permanent residents and visa holders also have important rights at airports, but their situation is more complex.
Although they are typically required to answer questions related to their immigration status upon entering the United States, they still have due process protections under the Fifth Amendment.
Noncitizens, especially those without legal status, can face extensive questioning from ICE. However, they still have important rights, including the right to remain silent, the right to refuse consent to searches of their belongings in some circumstances, and the right to a lawyer if they are detained.
If a passenger feels that their rights have been violated, it may be helpful to have a lawyer’s contact information on hand (preferably on a piece of paper that is easily accessible). Noor Zafar, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s Immigrant Rights Project, previously told USA TODAY that requests for attorneys vary depending on the situation, such as in cases of long-term detention. Travelers should note that police officers have the power to refuse requests.
The legal challenge, which dates back to immigration orders early in the Trump administration, underscores that even noncitizens at airports cannot be denied basic legal protections, such as access to a lawyer and protection from illegal detention.
Civil rights activists have warned that the presence of ICE agents at airports could blur the line between routine security screening and immigration enforcement. Although ICE has the power to arrest immigrants under federal law, that power is not unlimited and it still must adhere to constitutional safeguards.
As closures continue and ICE deployments begin, travelers could face an uncertain legal situation.
TSA wait times at O’Hare and Midway
Travelers who want to know current security wait times should check the Airport Insight website. This website provides airport-specific estimates, but covers only a small number of airports.
Chicago O’Hare and Midway airports are not listed on the website, so local travelers should consider using FlightQueue.
“Airline passengers should visit the airport’s website or app for wait time details,” the TSA told USA TODAY.
The agency confirmed that both the MyTSA mobile app and the agency’s wait time tracker are down due to the partial U.S. government shutdown.
