ICE at airports: Trump's troll move backfires [View all]

ICE at airports: Trump’s troll move backfires
The deployment isn't triggering the liberals. But it may anger some voters Republicans need in November

By Amanda Marcotte
Senior Writer
Published March 25, 2026 6:45AM (EDT)


(Salon) Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have been deployed by the Trump administration to airports around the country, and the idea appears to have started during call-in segments on right-wing radio shows.

This is no exaggeration.

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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, which oversees ICE operations. DHS has been shut down since Feb. 14, when the GOP refused to meet Democrats’ demands for significant reforms following the fatal shootings of American citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents. Although Linda and Clay-and-Buck did try to argue that ICE agents would help TSA with security, their proposal makes little sense in practice. Shorter lines would actually relieve pressure to get a funding deal done by taking away a major pain point.

Liberals hate ICE, the logic went, so why not inflict ICE on liberals and make them squeal? But the MAGA coalition has not been known for its logic, and it’s clear from the conversation that no one involved was really thinking this through. Instead, the scheme was rooted in a childish — and sadistic — impulse to bully.

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Despite credulous media reports perpetuating the belief that ICE has been deployed to help TSA agents, every indication is that Trump’s goal is to make already-miserable traveling experiences even worse. His posts on Truth Social are obviously threats, not offers of help. “‘GET READY.’ NO MORE WAITING, NO MORE GAMES!” read one. Another said, “If the Radical Left Democrats don’t immediately sign an agreement to let our Country,” the president would “look forward to seeing ICE in action at our Airports.”

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It’s especially silly in this case, because it’s not like the only people whose travel plans are being ruined are Democratic voters. Trump is inflicting harm on plenty of his own voters, and at a time when he’s already losing support from large chunks of the electorate that took a chance on him in 2024. 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. ...................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/03/25/ice-at-airports-trumps-troll-move-backfires/