Trump says he will sign an order to pay the TSA

President Donald Trump says he will sign an order instructing the Department of Homeland Security to pay TSA employees. The details of Trump’s proposal are still unclear, but Republicans have previously floated the idea of ​​using the National Emergency Act, which they say would give the federal government more flexibility to use unspent funds for the TSA.

« Since the Democrats have recklessly created a true national crisis, I am using my authority under the law to protect our great country, as I always will! » Trump wrote as part of a lengthy conversation Thursday on Truth Social.

« Therefore, I will be signing an order instructing Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin to immediately pay our TSA agents to deal with this emergency and quickly end the democratic chaos at airports, » the post continued.

« It’s not easy to do, but I’m going to do it! I want to thank our hardworking TSA agents and also ICE for the incredible help they’ve given us at the airports. I will not let radical leftist Democrats hold our country hostage any longer, » Trump wrote.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier Thursday that Republicans on Capitol Hill are considering asking Trump to use the National Emergency Act, though it’s hard to say if that’s the exact mechanism Trump plans to use in his order.

The president often engages in behavior that is far outside the norm (and sometimes just plain illegal), and it can be difficult to decipher what lever he will pull for any given action. Trump’s post refers to an order and an « emergency, » but he’s been known to randomly capitalize things in his social media posts.

The TSA is understaffed, with 11 percent of employees calling in sick Wednesday, with some of the worst-hit airports seeing call-in rates as high as 40 percent. Airport security lines reached historic lengths, stretching for hours at airports in Houston and New Orleans. At least 480 TSA employees have quit in the past month.

At the heart of the matter is DHS funding, which Democrats in Congress have withheld because they oppose the way ICE and CBP have been used to terrorize immigrant communities. Trump has deployed ICE agents to assist the TSA, which the president positioned as part of an effort to restore the « false image » given to them by Democrats in a Truth Social post on Wednesday.

The Wall Street Journal notes that Trump’s use of the National Emergency Act is likely to face legal challenges because federal spending must be approved by Congress. But it’s hard to imagine Democrats racing to the court too quickly. After all, Democrats are the ones proposing legislation that would only fund the TSA, not ICE or CBP.

If Trump follows through and doesn’t try to give additional funding to ICE as well, it looks like the Democrats got what they wanted. At least for now.