To pay TSA officers during shutdown, Trump weighs sidestepping Congress [View all]
Source: Washington Post
March 26, 2026 at 3:06 p.m. EDT
The White House is weighing unilateral action to pay Transportation Security Administration officers if Senate Democrats and Republicans cannot quickly agree to a deal on the Department of Homeland Security’s budget, people familiar with the discussions said Thursday.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-South Dakota) described the potential plan to Republican senators in a closed-door lunch. The move would sidestep Congress as millions of travelers face record security delays, largely because of staffing problems at TSA.
Five people familiar with the comments spoke about the plan on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Asked about Thune’s comments, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said “it is true the White House is having discussions about a number of ideas to blunt the impact of the Democrat shutdown crisis, but no preparations or plans are currently underway. The best and easiest way to pay TSA Agents is to fund DHS.”
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/03/26/trump-tsa-unilateral-payment/
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