Short-staffed security checkpoints continued to paralyze some US airports this week, with long lines and wait times that stretched for hours.
Officers with the Transportation Security Administration have been working for six weeks without pay during a partial government shutdown, and Congress has been locked in a stalemate over funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
This week, at the request of President Donald Trump, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrived at 14 major US airports to assist TSA workers who haven’t called out of work or quit. The ICE agents have been seen directing snaking security lines and passing out water bottles to tired travelers, but it’s still unclear whether they have made a significant dent as wait times began to tick up again as the weekend neared. Many factors, including the number of travelers and available security checkpoints, impact wait times.
On Thursday, Trump said he would sign an order instructing the Department of Homeland Security to “immediately pay” TSA agents. It was not immediately clear with what money the administration intends to pay the agents.
Hours later, the Senate unanimously moved to fund most of the department in a rare overnight session.
Here are some of the stories that made headlines over the past week, as well as some photos that caught our eye.
