{"id":2577686,"date":"2026-03-09T09:32:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T13:32:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/airport-chaos-becomes-pain-point-for-government-shutdown\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T09:35:05","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T13:35:05","slug":"airport-chaos-becomes-pain-point-for-government-shutdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/airport-chaos-becomes-pain-point-for-government-shutdown\/","title":{"rendered":"Airport chaos becomes pain point for government shutdown"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fairport-chaos-becomes-pain-point-for-government-shutdown%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2577686&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Airports nationwide faced travel chaos as TSA workers called out during the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nancy-pelosi-blames-president-trump-climate-change-for-migrant-surge\/\" title=\"Nancy Pelosi blames President Trump, \u2018climate change\u2019 for migrant surge\">partial government shutdown<\/a>, causing long security lines and widespread delays.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The shutdown has affected the Department of Homeland Security and its agencies since February 14, with TSA employees going without pay and receiving only partial paychecks in earlier weeks.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; At Houston\u2019s William P. Hobby Airport, travelers were advised to arrive four to five hours before flights, with waits potentially exceeding three hours.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; At Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, passengers faced similar delays, needing to arrive at least three hours early and waiting up to two hours.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Social media posts showed lines stretching to parking areas, highlighting the severity of the disruption.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Politically,Republicans and the Trump governance blamed Democrats for blocking DHS funding,while a DHS spokesperson argued that <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >funding refusals endangered national security<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; In response, President Trump nominated Markwayne Mullin to replace Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem; Senate confirmation was still pending.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Travel experts had warned that partial paychecks would strain TSA employees in the coming weeks, contributing to growing airport congestion.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Separately,a bomb threat at Kansas City International Airport prompted an evacuation,though it was deemed not credible.<\/p>\n<p>the funding impasse is driving operational strains at major airports and prompting a political scramble to resolve the shutdown.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Airport chaos escalates pressure to resolve DHS government shutdown<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2524224\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>A few major <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/airport\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"11534\">airports<\/a> across the country experienced long security lines for several hours on Sunday as unpaid staffers with the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tsa\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"1557\">Transportation Security Administration<\/a> called out of work amid the partial <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/government-shutdown\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"18\">government shutdown<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The shutdown has directly affected the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/department-of-homeland-security\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"3083\">Department of Homeland Security<\/a> and its agencies, including TSA, since Feb. 14.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4483445\/what-still-missing-epstein-files-doj-begins-restore-removed-documents\/\">What&#8217;s still missing from Epstein files? DOJ begins restoring removed documents<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4484075\/gonzales-2026-race-exit-affair-house\/\">Gonzales reelection exit skirts disciplinary headache for Mike Johnson&#8217;s thin majority<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4483979\/brian-mast-state-department-biden-queer-maps-project\/\">Brian Mast questions State Department official on Biden administation&#8217;s &#8216;queer&#8217; maps project&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>In Congress, Democrats withheld DHS funding because they didn&rsquo;t want the money going toward <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ice\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ice\/\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement<\/a> after the January deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota. Their efforts have strained other DHS agencies in the process, however.<\/p>\n<p>After TSA employees received their last full paycheck last month, there hasn&rsquo;t been much incentive for them to continue to work amid the shutdown. Their absences are now causing major delays at airports.<\/p>\n<p>At William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, passengers were told to arrive four to five hours before their flights in order to get through the TSA screening process in time. The airport <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/HobbyAirport\/status\/2030713894105190619\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/HobbyAirport\/status\/2030713894105190619\">warned<\/a> that the wait times may exceed three hours.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Airline passengers wait in long lines outside the terminal to get through the TSA security screening at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Brett Coomer\/Houston Chronicle via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Passengers at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport had a similarly frustrating experience, having to arrive at least three hours before their flights and waiting up to two hours. The airport <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/flyneworleans\/status\/2030952799811355119\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/flyneworleans\/status\/2030952799811355119\">reminded<\/a> passengers of the long wait times on Monday morning.<\/p>\n<p>Both airports attributed the longer-than-normal lines to the partial government shutdown.<\/p>\n<p>There were <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/getparlerapp\/status\/2030962694589686196\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/getparlerapp\/status\/2030962694589686196\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fact-check-did-denzel-washington-make-this-statement-about-breaking-generational-curses\/\" title=\"FACT CHECK: Did Denzel Washington Make This Statement About Breaking \u2018Generational Curses\u2019?\">numerous social media posts<\/a><\/a> on Sunday showing passengers waiting in line to get past security. At certain points, the lines reached all the way to the parking garages.<\/p>\n<p>Republicans and the Trump administration blamed Democrats for causing the airport chaos with their opposition to the DHS funding bill.<\/p>\n<p>In a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JohnCornyn\/status\/2030721414081163492?s=20\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JohnCornyn\/status\/2030721414081163492?s=20\">post on X<\/a>, Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/john-cornyn\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"965\">John Cornyn<\/a> (R-TX) told customers at the Hobby Airport to &ldquo;thank a Democrat&rdquo; for the inconvenience.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Airline passengers wait in long lines to get through the TSA security screening at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Brett Coomer\/Houston Chronicle via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A DHS spokesperson also placed blame on Democrats, accusing them of &ldquo;shamelessly playing politics with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fast-tracked-lawsuit-aims-to-ban-police-body-cameras-with-alleged-ties-to-china-ahead-of-dnc-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Fast...tracked lawsuit aims to ban police body cameras with alleged ties to China ahead of DNC ... Washington Examiner\">national security&#038;rdquo<\/a>; by refusing to back the bill that starts paying TSA employees again.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;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,&rdquo; spokeswoman Lauren Bis <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TSA\/status\/2030715871178465465\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TSA\/status\/2030715871178465465\">said<\/a>. &ldquo;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.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration is pressing Democrats to end the funding stalemate as DHS inches closer toward new leadership.<\/p>\n<p>In an unexpected announcement late last week, President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"4\">Donald Trump<\/a> tapped Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/markwayne-mullin\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"21441\">Markwayne Mullin<\/a> (R-OK) to replace Homeland Security Secretary <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kristi-noem\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"3710\">Kristi Noem<\/a>. Mullin needs to be confirmed by the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"8765\">Senate<\/a> before he can assume the new role.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking on Fox News&rsquo;s <em>Sunday Morning Futures<\/em>, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/white-house\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"8767\">White House<\/a> press secretary <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/karoline-leavitt\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"11685\">Karoline Leavitt<\/a> urged the Senate to confirm Mullin &ldquo;quickly&rdquo; and pass the DHS funding bill that would end the shutdown.<\/p>\n<p>Travel expert Katy Nastro previously told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> that the partial paychecks would start to strain TSA employees around the third or fourth week of the latest shutdown. It entered its third week on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/travel\/4460797\/dhs-shutdown-tsa-airport-delays\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/travel\/4460797\/dhs-shutdown-tsa-airport-delays\/\">TRAVEL INDUSTRY WARNS OF RISING AIRPORT STRAIN AMID PARTIAL SHUTDOWN<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Adding to the chaos at airports but unrelated to the shutdown, a bomb threat prompted Kansas City International Airport to shut down for about two hours on Sunday. All passengers were ordered to evacuate as a precaution.<\/p>\n<p>The bomb threat was ultimately deemed not credible by authorities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DHS shutdown triggers airport security delays<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2159,"featured_media":2577687,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/AP26067756760300.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[75400,72886,71961,74204,75401],"class_list":["post-2577686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-airport-chaos","tag-federal-government-2","tag-government-shutdown-2","tag-policy-analysis-2","tag-travel-disruption-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/AP26067756760300.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2159"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2577686"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577686\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2577690,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577686\/revisions\/2577690"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2577687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2577686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2577686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2577686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}