Flight chaos returned to California on Sunday as huge lines formed at TSA checkpoints amid a spiraling funding crisis.
Passengers were stuck in two-hour waits at San Diego International Airport as the 40-day Homeland Security shutdown wreaked havoc across the country.
It comes as the Golden State braced for a dramatic standoff over President Trump’s plans to deploy ICE agents to major terminals to fill gaps left by TSA agents.
In a statement to the Post, Gavin Newsom called for the immigration unit to be “reined in,” but would not comment on what he will do if officers are sent to California sites.
Meanwhile TSA agents were furious over the plans, branding it “the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard yet.”
Passengers reported misery at San Diego International from 6.30 a.m. on Sunday as lines streamed through check-in and delays showed across the boards.
Pictures showed hundreds of flyers at a standstill across the major hub with many seen frantically texting while they waited to be ushered forward.
U.S. Rep. Scott Peters claimed: “View from the San Diego airport at 6:30 this morning. It doesn’t have to be like this.”
“I have a bill to pay TSA workers, Coast Guard and emergency management without adding more to ICE and Border Patrol.”
“Easy, right? But Trump won’t allow it. As the DHS shutdown drags into nearly 40 days, federal workers and travelers shouldn’t have to suffer from Republican inaction.”
Another traveler, Suajit, posted a shocking video of the bedlam, writing: ”San Diego Airport is a mess right now, terminal two delays up to two hours and terminal one has just one TSA line with no pre-check.”
Ellissee Maio added: “Two-hour wait time at the San Diego airport this weekend. Wondering what it will be like on Monday with news of ICE filling in for TSA… bet it cuts in half.”
Flight Aware’s misery map also showed 174 delays out of San Diego Sunday, with four cancellations including on Delta, Alaska and SkyWest.
Airport spokesman Nicole Hall said: “Checkpoint wait times and flight scheduling are subject to the operations of our federal and airline partners.”
“These operations are, at times, affected by the federal government shutdown.”
She added: “We appreciate the ongoing commitment from TSA, FAA and our partner airlines to maintain the safety and reliability of the national transportation system during this challenging time.”
Other major hubs in California also faced problems on Sunday, with both San Francisco and LAX showing cancellations.
Thirty-seven were late out of Los Angeles as of Sunday night and 31 more were delayed out of San Francisco.
Despite the cancellations, TSA lines were so far smooth out of LAX, with passengers quickly sailing through the airport checkpoints.
One flyer, Christopher Hochstuhl, told the Post: “All I can say is… I don’t know… we’re the richest country in the world.”
“You need to pay your workers. There’s no excuse for this. I don’t think there’s anything else that needs to be said.”
Another, Michiko Romm, added: “I am here to board a flight back to Chicago. I’ve been LA for the past week. And LA has been really cool. Saw some cool things.”
“So here I am at the airport, and I was expecting to see a lot of long lines, but right at the moment, as I’m staring right at the TSA check lane, it actually looks very, very reasonable, so I am hopeful.”
LAX tends to suffer less TSA chaos due to better infrastructure inside the terminals, more investment and 30 automated screening lanes that speeds passengers through.
Data released on Sunday showed more than 3,250 TSA officers called out nationwide on Saturday — the worst absentee rate since the partial Homeland Security shutdown began and agents started going unpaid.
The mass exodus accounted for 11.51% of the scheduled workforce, leaving already-strained security lines even more vulnerable to meltdown.
The worst impacted airports across the country were Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson Airport, Houston, New York hubs and Philadelphia.
More mayhem is expected to impact Californian sites later in the week as Trump plans to deploy ICE agents to make up for the shortfall.
The president posted on Truth Social on Saturday: “On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical Left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all.”
The president did not reveal what airports he will target specifically, but, with the delays beginning at California hubs on Sunday, the state appeared to be bracing for their arrival.
White House border czar Tom Homan added: “I don’t see an ICE agent looking at an x-ray machine – because you’re not trained in that – [but] there are certain parts of security that TSA is doing that we can move them off those jobs and put them in the specialized jobs to help move those lines.”
Newsom reacted furiously to the news on Sunday, claiming to the Post that Trump was “deploying his personal police force.”
He said: “By sending ICE into airports, Trump is proving the problem in real time: ICE has become the president’s lawless, under-trained, personal police force, deployed to serve his agenda – not the law. That’s exactly why it needs to be reined in.”
When pressed by the Post what he will do if ICE agents are sent to Californian airports, the governor did not respond.
Despite the chaos on Sunday, San Diego TSA agents also chimed in with Newsom, with its head of operations branding the move “ridiculous.”
Robert Mack told NBC7: “Absolute shock because that’s just the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard yet out of this.”
He continued: “My duty is still the same, but at the end, if I can’t put food in my stomach, I can’t keep a roof over my head, the people I’m supposed to be taking care of are failing me.”
TSA lead transportation security office at the airport Aaron Vazquez added to the Times of San Diego: “I have no idea how they can contribute at an airport unless it was for intimidation purposes.”
He continued: “I don’t want them anywhere near the checkpoint and officers that I’m in charge of. I don’t want them interfering with what the officers are trying to do.”
“I don’t need an ICE agent telling passengers what to do. We are trained to be nice to passengers. They are law enforcement so they are armed. TSA is not.”
He added: “[ICE agents] can monitor traffic of the passengers to make sure they don’t get out of line or go through the stanchions.”
“I don’t understand what we need help with if it’s not people that are able to screen the passengers.”
Thousands of flyers suffered across the country over the weekend as flights were canceled and delayed and huge lines formed at dozens of TSA checkpoints.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned the worst may still be ahead.
He said: “I think you’re going to see more TSA agents, as we come to Thursday, Friday, Saturday of next week, they’re going to quit or they’re not going to show up.” He added: “So I do think it’s going to get much worse.”
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