ICE agents seen at Chicago O’Hare International Airport amid long TSA wait times and lines

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrived at O’Hare International Airport on Monday morning, CBS News Chicago confirmed.

The Trump administration said that, effective as soon as Monday, ICE agents could be deployed to airports to relieve congestion at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints.

CBS News Chicago has seen at least two people wearing vests that say “POLICE/ICE” at the top of the stairs in Terminal 2, but when they noticed the camera, they moved out of sight.

Travelers said they’re feeling uneasy with federal agents at the airports, though they’re only there to assist with crowd management and security, and not to enforce immigration.

ICE agents have been spotted at exit points across terminals—some milling around and some wearing tactical vests. Some wore masks, despite being ordered by President Trump not to at airports. In Terminal 1, agents stood in pairs at passenger exit points, watching as travelers walked by.

“They’re not qualified. They haven’t gone through training, it’s not their job,” said traveler Shana Tompa.

Earlier in the day, one passenger who had just arrived at O’Hare said he saw agents “just hanging around.” 

“Talking. They were just in the exit area, not even the TSA area per se. I guess guarding people where you would see them if they went in the wrong direction,” the passenger said. 

A TSA worker at baggage claim identified a man dressed all in black inside a security exit downstairs as an ICE agent. That man did not have any insignia identifying him as an ICE agent.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement he expected approximately 75 agents to be deployed at O’Hare across multiple shifts starting Monday. The mayor said Midway International Airport “hasn’t been identified for similar deployment.”

“I have concerns about the deployment of federal agents at airports across the United States,” the mayor wrote in his statement. 

Johnson said the ICE agents are expected to do non-screening support duties, like monitoring exit lanes, making routine passenger announcements like reminders to remove liquids from their bags, assisting with line management, which will help TSA stay focused on screenings. He said his office will “closely monitor the deployment and use every tool we have to ensure that people, no matter their immigration status, can travel to and from Chicago safely and without harassment from the federal government.”

Some travelers are worried about who’s being watched and why.

“It’s scary,” said traveler Michael Ashley. “I have a background in government. Typically, we don’t have federal police force. I love security, I love to be safe, I love what TSA does, I really appreciate what they do, I love having a safe border, but, you know, everyone knows, like the thing with ICE and kinda scary recently, especially here in Chicago, to be honest.”

ICE agents were also seen Monday morning at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.  

Three- to four-hour security lines continue to plague airports around the country as unpaid TSA officers call out sick while working without pay.

Sources told CBS News the Department of Homeland Security is scrambling to figure out how ICE would assist the TSA — whether it would be securing entries and exits or helping check IDs.

CBS News Chicago asked people traveling through O’Hare Sunday night how they would feel if they saw ICE agents pitching in at airports.

Trump made clear on Sunday that he was going ahead with the plan to have immigration enforcement officers assist the TSA by guarding exit lanes or checking passenger IDs unless Democrats agreed to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Democrats are demanding major changes to federal immigration operations and show no sign of backing down.

Hundreds of thousands of homeland security workers, including those from the TSA, U.S. Secret Service, and Coast Guard, have worked without pay since Congress failed to renew DHS funding last month. Hundreds of TSA agents have quit, while others have been calling off since then.

“Yeah, that’s a big ol’ bummer,” said Morgan Jarvis. “I’d like them to be less places overall.”

“I mean, it’s extra help,” said Jacob Whisenand. “I think it’s more workers the better, because of how bad the lines are right now.”

The union for TSA workers does not like the idea of ICE helping them.

Everett Kelly, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said in a statement that the TSA officers “deserve to be paid, not replaced by untrained, armed agents who have shown how dangerous they can be.”

Local union leaders for TSA officers in Illinois and Wisconsin said the ICE plan may complicate matters for employees who have specialized training.

Democrats have said they are willing to fund TSA and most other parts of DHS as they press for changes to immigration operations after the deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis during an immigration enforcement operation. ICE officers are largely being paid during the partial shutdown, thanks to an influx of cash from Trump’s big tax break bill last year.  

There were long lines at the standard O’Hare TSA checkpoint around 7:45 a.m. as nervous travelers got there extra early, which lasted about 10 minutes and then improved. Other airports have seen a more constant issue with TSA wait times. 

President Trump said he’ll send in the National Guard if ICE isn’t enough to help with the long security lines. There is no clear timeline for when things will change.