White House memo says Trump has instructed DHS to pay federal airport workers as long lines snarl travel. Published On 27 Mar 202627 Mar 2026Republican leaders in the United States House of Representatives have shot down a bill passed by the Senate that would have resumed funding for federal agencies tasked with airport screenings, continuing a standoff that has resulted in chaos at airports as workers go without pay.In the early hours of Friday morning, the Senate unanimously passed a bill that would finance most of agencies under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the US Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listBut that bill withheld funding from two branches related to President Donald Trump’s hardline crackdown on immigration: border patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).By Friday afternoon, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed he would not bring the Senate-passed bill to the floor for a vote and slammed the legislation as a “joke”.“We’re going to do something different,” Johnson said, suggesting that the House could advance its own bill fully funding all DHS agencies for two months.Separately, President Donald Trump signed an executive memo directing DHS to work with the White House budget director to find a way to pay TSA employees.TSA security agents have gone without pay since the partial government shutdown began in mid-February, leading many to quit or refuse to show up for work at airports across the country.“America’s air travel system has reached its breaking point. This is an unprecedented emergency situation,” Trump wrote in the memo, blaming the impasse on Democrats. Advertisement He estimated that nearly 500 TSA security agents have left their jobs since the partial shutdown began.Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, have slammed Republicans for rejecting bills that would ensure that TSA employees are paid while continuing to withhold additional funds from immigration enforcement.A tax-and-spending bill last July earmarked nearly $170bn for immigration and border operatio …
