The partial Shutdown of the government has now been going on for almost a month as Democrats refuse to budge on their demands for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reforms. Although ICE is fully funded due to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, other departments like the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) are not, leaving the nation at risk of attack and creating travel nightmares at the airports.
On Sunday, 10 CEOs from the largest airlines joined forces to tell Congress, enough already!
Today, the @washingtonpost published an open letter to Congress from 10 aviation CEOs—representing the largest U.S. passenger and cargo carriers—who stressed the importance of paying federal aviation workers, including TSA officers, U.S. Customs clearance officers and air traffic… pic.twitter.com/apeFSIW2xP
— Airlines for America (@AirlinesDotOrg) March 15, 2026
The tweet continued:
Today, the @washingtonpost published an open letter to Congress from 10 aviation CEOs—representing the largest U.S. passenger and cargo carriers—who stressed the importance of paying federal aviation workers, including TSA officers, U.S. Customs clearance officers and air traffic controllers, during government shutdowns.
The letter stressed that tens of thousands of TSA employees are not getting paid, putting unfair stress on their lives and their families:
The chief executive officers of major U.S. airlines urged Congress on Sunday to move quickly to end a 29-day partial government shutdown that has forced 50,000 airport security officers to work without pay, warning it could further disrupt U.S. air travel.
Absences by Transportation Security Administration officers have already disrupted travel at some major airports over the last week, raising alarm as the busy spring break travel season continues.
"Too many travelers are having to wait in extraordinarily long - and painfully slow - lines at checkpoints," the CEOs of American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways , Alaska Air and others wrote in an open letter to Congress.
DISGRACEFUL: Dems Reveal Peak Hypocrisy and Unbelievable Demand As They Continue Blocking DHS Funding
\Democrats Laugh in the Faces of Americans As Unpaid TSA Agents Quit in Droves Over Schumer Shutdown
Although the Democrats are trying to paint the partial shutdown as a cause of Republican intransigence, the fault lies squarely at their feet. With their not ready for prime time demands, they’re acting like they won the House, the Senate, and the Oval Office in 2024 — but they lost all three.
As former President Barack Obama snottily told GOP lawmakers in 2009, soon after taking office, “elections have consequences.” Instead of remembering that maxim, the Dems are acting like children who didn’t get their way and took the ball home. It would just be political theater, but in this case, it’s directly endangering Americans, as we’ve experienced multiple terror attacks since U.S. operations against Iran commenced.
To kneecap the Department of Homeland Security at this time over disputes about one specific department is a dereliction of duty.
The CEOs continued, saying that this kind of gamesmanship should never occur again when it comes to air travel:
"First, leaders should immediately come together to reach an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Then they need to act so this problem never happens again," they added.
Last fall, a 43-day government shutdown led to widespread flight disruptions and the FAA ordered a 10% flight cut at major airports. "Once again air travel is the political football amid another government shutdown," the CEOs wrote.
3+ hour TSA lines for travelers.
— TSA (@TSA) March 14, 2026
300+ TSA officers who have quit.
A $0 paycheck for those continuing to serve.
Enough is enough.
No more playing politics with the lives of Americans. The Democrat shutdown of DHS must end now. pic.twitter.com/VsHc71TOA9
The GOP should remind voters of the Democrats’ shenanigans every single day until November 3.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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