President Trump announced Thursday that he will sign an executive order to “immediately” pay Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers, as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown enters its 41st day.
“I am going to sign an order instructing Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin to immediately pay our TSA agents to address this emergency situation and quickly stop the Democrat chaos at the airports,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He added, “It is not an easy thing to do, but I am going to do it! I want to thank our hardworking TSA agents and ICE for the incredible help they have given us at the airports.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Hill that Trump would sign the order “as soon as it’s ready.”
A senior administration official confirmed that funds from President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act would be used to pay TSA personnel.
“Not unlike actions taken during the first Democrat shutdown, where the troops were paid, President Trump has determined that congressional Democrats have created an emergency situation that cannot continue,” the official said.
The ongoing shutdown has caused long lines at airport security checkpoints nationwide.
TSA agents have gone without pay for more than a month due to a partial shutdown of DHS, leading to nationwide staffing shortages and long lines at airports across the US that have severely affected travelers. Passengers have reported missing flights as they’ve waited for hours in queues.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration deployed US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to airports in what Trump said was an effort to assist TSA.
The Senate is holding an open vote on a broader DHS funding bill, but its passage remains uncertain.
The issue is likely to become a political liability ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Democrats voted Wednesday for the seventh time to block a House-passed bill that would fund DHS through September.
