DHS Secretary Mullin Floats Reviewing CBP Staffing at Sanctuary Cities' International Airports to Prioritize Cooperative Jurisdictions
Cover image from rawstory.com, which was analyzed for this article
New DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned sanctuary cities they risk losing CBP and immigration services at international airports if they don't cooperate on enforcement. The move pressures cities like NYC to partner or face disruptions. It ties into broader immigration crackdowns.
PoliticalOS
Tuesday, April 7, 2026 — Politics
DHS Secretary Mullin proposed scrutinizing CBP at sanctuary airports to enforce cooperation amid funding shortages, echoing past Trump policies but raising untested legal questions. Critics decry overreach based on prior court blocks, while no formal action or city responses have emerged. The idea highlights tensions in immigration enforcement, with economic risks to major hubs if pursued.
What outlets missed
Most outlets downplayed specific legal precedents distinguishing airport staffing from prior grant withholdings, such as the lack of rulings on CBP operational reallocations under 8 U.S.C. § 1357. They omitted bipartisan aspects of the Senate's unanimous DHS funding vote on March 27, 2026, framing it solely as Democratic defunding. Coverage largely ignored potential passenger volume impacts at hubs like JFK (12.5 million international arrivals in 2025) and responses—or lack thereof—from airport authorities. Detailed timelines of Mullin's confirmation (March 28, 2026) and related SFO ICE incident (March 2026) were absent.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, confirmed by the Senate in late March 2026 following a confirmation hearing on March 18, 2026, suggested on April 6, 2026, during an interview on Fox News' 'Special Report' with anchor Bret Baier that the Department of Homeland Security may need to scrutinize Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operations at international airports in sanctuary cities. Mullin stated, 'I believe sanctuary cities is not lawful,' adding, 'Some of these cities have international airports. If they are a sanctuary city, should they really be processing customs into their city? We need to have a really hard look at that.' He emphasized prioritizing resources for cooperative areas, saying, 'We need to focus on cities that want to work with us.'
Baier pressed Mullin on whether major hubs like those in New York City, Los Angeles or San Francisco could lose customs processing, to which Mullin replied, 'I'm going to be forced to make tough decisions.' Mullin linked the idea to ongoing congressional funding battles, noting, 'Democrats are wanting to defund Customs and Border Protection,' and 'who processes those individuals when they walk off the plane?' He clarified, 'I'm not going outside the policies that Congress has passed for me... you've got to partner with us.' The comments came amid a partial government funding lapse affecting DHS, with the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026.