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The Department of Homeland Security blamed Democrats for travelers facing long security lines amid a DHS funding lapse.
"Americans are now enduring the severe fallout from the Democrat shutdown of DHS. Today, travelers are facing TSA lines of up to nearly 3 hours long at some major airports causing missed flights and massive delays during peak travel," DHS deputy assistant secretary for public affairs Lauren Bis said in a statement, according to Transportation Security Administration posts Sunday on X.
"This chaos is a direct result of Democrats and their refusal to fund DHS. These political stunts force patriotic TSA officers, who protect our skies from serious threats, to work without pay," the statement asserted. "These frontline heroes received only partial paychecks earlier this month and now face their first full missed paycheck, leading to financial hardship, absences, and crippling staffing shortages."
The Transportation Security Administration building in Springfield, Virginia, Feb. 13, 2026. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
Bis called upon Democrats to fund the department.
"Democrats are shamelessly playing politics with national security, punishing hardworking TSA workers and their families. Enough is enough: stop holding national security and everyday Americans hostage. Democrats must fund DHS now," she declared.
NOEM THANKS TRUMP FOR NEW SHIELD OF THE AMERICAS SPECIAL ENVOY ROLE AFTER DHS OUSTER
A Lufthansa Airlines Airbus A350, coming from Munich, approaches San Diego International Airport in California on Aug. 16, 2025. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
DHS hammered Democrats over the issue on X.
"SPRING BREAK UNDER SIEGE," a post declared. "The Democrats’ DHS shutdown has led to HOURS long security lines at airports across the country, leading Americans to miss their spring break flights."
"There is ZERO reason for spring break travel to be held hostage for political points — Democrats must end this DHS shutdown NOW," the post added.
KRISTI NOEM OUSTED FROM HOMELAND SECURITY POST AMID RECENT TURMOIL
President Donald Trump speaks during the "Shield of the Americas" Summit at Trump National Doral in Miami, Florida, March 7, 2026. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
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President Donald Trump announced last week that he is tapping Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., for the role of Homeland Security secretary, and that current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem will instead serve as special envoy for an initiative called "Shield of the Americas."
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Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.
