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GEORGE BUSH INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT, Texas — The arrival of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers at Houston’s busiest airport brought swift relief to travelers previously facing lengthy wait times. With the assistance of these officers, unpaid TSA agents managed to cut screening lines that initially took four hours down to just one hour.
Arriving at Terminal A of George Bush Intercontinental Airport around 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday, the TSA Houston Airport Security website showed a daunting four-hour wait time. After checking in luggage, passengers were guided to the subway level two floors below, joining the extensive TSA screening queue.
The trek to the end of the line in the underground passage stretched half to three-quarters of a mile. The subsequent return walk within the queue lasted about an hour. Airport staff then directed passengers to the second floor, where a serpentine line wound through baggage claim and the passenger pickup lobby, culminating in another escalator ride to the main security checkpoint.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Officers working in IAH Houston Airport (Bob Price/ – Texas)
During this time, news spread that ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers were beginning their shift. Their presence was soon felt, as they facilitated the reassignment of TSA personnel from non-screening roles, thus enabling more TSA agents to focus on screening tasks.
Initially, only the South Concourse screening line was operational. As passengers neared the halfway point of the main screening queue, the North Concourse line was opened, significantly reducing waiting periods. Within ten minutes, travelers passed through the checkpoint, entering the terminal’s secure area. Overall, the screening process took just under two hours, thanks to the additional screening line.
Conversations with ICE officers working in Terminals A, D, and E revealed this was their second day assisting at the airport. They shared that on Tuesday, wait times reached five to six hours. By 10 a.m. on Wednesday, these wait times had been slashed to less than one hour.
After making their way through screening lines, many passengers who planned ahead and arrived early took a much-needed break. (Bob Price/ – Texas)
“We are happy to be helping to provide some relief to passengers and the TSA agents who are not currently being paid due to the Democrats withholding funding for the Department of Homeland Security,” one ERO officer told -. The officer also expressed frustration with not being out on the streets, removing criminal aliens from the city of Houston and the surrounding counties.
“We would much rather be doing the job we are trained and paid to do,” the officer stated.
– spoke with several passengers who had cleared screening and were waiting for their boarding time. Some expressed sympathy for the TSA employees who were being forced by the Democrat-led shutdown to work without pay. Others expressed their appreciation for the ICE officers who were deployed to help reduce their wait times.
President Donald Trump expressed his gratitude to the men and women of ICE who went straight to work to help the American people in this travel crisis created by Democrats’ refusal to fund DHS. ICE officers and agents are fully funded under provisions passed by Congress in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Bob Price is the – Texas-Border team’s associate editor and senior news contributor. He is an original member of the – Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday morning talk show. He also serves as president of Blue Wonder Gun Care Products.
