The Trump administration never ceases to surprise with its hasty decisions or suggestions. And clearly, the new US Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), who replaced Kristi Noem on March 24th, will be no exception to the rule.
Markwayne Mullin recently spoke to the American media about the conflict between Democrats and Republicans over the funding of his own department.
The Democrats have indeed blocked a request for additional funds, allocated to the famous ICE agency, since February.United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement). The DHS is also the employer of another agency, Customs and Border ProtectionU.S. Customs and Border Protection or CBPincluding being responsible for monitoring the arrival of international travellers at airports.
Due to the budget impasse, CBP agents are calling in sick because they haven't been paid for nearly eight weeks, causing chaos at airports at immigration checkpoints. This gave an idea to Markwayne Mullin.
Sanctuary cities targeted by the federal administration
He thus stated on Tuesday that, faced with the shortage, he would ask President Donald Trump if it would be possible to withdraw customs agents from "sanctuary cities". These latter are generally run by Democrats. They refuse to cooperate with ICE and legally protect immigrants from the Trump administration's prosecutions.
The withdrawal of CBP agents would effectively penalise the main American international airports. Among the recalcitrant "sanctuary cities" identified by the Department of Justice last October are Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Newark, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle. These cities are among the country's main air gateways. According to US Department of Transportation statistics, in the first 10 months of 2025, airports in these cities handled 108 million passengers...
New York City alone, with its three airports (JFK, La Guardia and Newark), recorded 42.5 million international travellers during this period. Los Angeles comes in second place with 19.5 million international travellers and San Francisco in third place with nearly 13 million non-US citizens.
Is this a lack of common sense or just a political game?
Such an act could therefore deprive the United States of around ten international air gateways – with all the consequences that can be imagined for airlines and travellers. It would force passengers to fly first to about ten international hubs, most of them in the south of the country. Like Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami – with Washington DC being the most northerly airport in the country.
The measure would also have another consequence for the American and global economy: that of considerably reducing international points of entry for goods, since it is CBP agents who also control their customs clearance.
Is this actually a grandstanding move by Markwayne Mullin? It's highly probable, given the economic and international consequences such a decision would create.
Markwayne Mullin has since tempered his remarks, Reuters reports: « It's an option " he told reporters in North Carolina, adding that no decision had been made. " If cities state that they will not enforce immigration laws, then it does not make sense for us to continue processing international travellers in them. ".
And to specify again: « We are going to start having these discussions [with the President]. As I said, it's an idea I'm considering. It's not necessarily something I'm going to do. But the mere thought of it is already disturbing…
