During the Biden administration, Delta came under fire for flying planeloads of migrants as passengers which was odd because (1) these were paying passengers allowed by TSA to travel, and (2) conservatives had generally applauded flying passengers out of southern states to northern blue ones.
At one point up to 20% of pasengers flying out of border airports were migrants. Delta even appeared to schedule flights that only made sense to sell walkup fares to carry migrants.
And migrants were found living in airports like Boston Logan and Chicago O’Hare while New York City’s Mayor claimed that half the city’s hotel rooms were housing asylum seekers. I believe that we should have far more immigration than we do today, but I also understand that the median voter matters and allowing such significant, largely unfiltered border crossing played a large role in Donald Trump’s 2024 victory.
I just landed in Boston.
Hundreds of migrants are camped out inside the arrivals area of Boston Logan International Airport. pic.twitter.com/mybTS1bn7n
— Harrison Faulkner (@Harry__Faulkner) June 7, 2024
GROWING POPULATION OF MIGRANTS AT LOGAN AIRPORT
Boston’s Logan Airport has experienced an increase in migrants, with hundreds staying in the baggage claim area since last year. The state’s shelters, which can accommodate a maximum of 7,500 people, are full.
Massachusetts… pic.twitter.com/5PDokLYepy
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 12, 2024
A new Senate report says the Biden White House asked major U.S. airports to house migrants in terminals and other airport facilities – even after airport operators warned that doing so would create safety and security risks, and was likely illegal.
The 47-page staff report from the Senate Commerce Committee chaired by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) alleges that the Biden White House directed Pete Buttigieg’s Department of Transportation and its agencies like the FAA, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and Federal Transit Administratoin to help locate space at airports and move federal resources to support migrant arrivals.
- On October 6, 2023, an FAA official emailed Massport, which operates Boston Logan, writing, “We have received a request from the WH to determine if there are available facilities on airport or surrounding areas… This is an immediate ask.” A Department of Transportation staffer replied,
Yikes, this is definitely Fox News fodder in the making.
- The committee says at least 11 airports were asked or pressured to house migrants in terminals, hangars or auxiliary buildings. The report focuses most heavily on Boston Logan, Chicago O’Hare and New York JFK.
- At Logan, Massport warned federal officials that airports are not set up to run as shelters:
We are not designed or resourced to manage the intake of migrant populations… this would create a host of unintended safety and security consequences.
However, the report says Logan hosted up to 352 migrants overnight in Terminal E, and Massport later disclosed $779,000 in associated costs, with roughly $332,000 passed on to airlines in rates and charges.
- At Chicago O’Hare, the report states that as many as 900 migrants were housed in a shuttle terminal between April 2023 and February 2024. Chicago police logged 329 service calls and 26 arrests during that period, including complaints of theft, disorderly conduct and a death investigation.
This activity likely violates federal grant assurance rules and would have required formal federal approval that never happened. And regardless of your views on immigration, this sort of policy was indeed ‘tailor made for Fox News’. What’s remarkable is that they knew that at the outset, it was obvious, and no one stopped it. That’s not the sort of competent administration that was one of the unique selling points politically in the 2024 election.
I’m sorry but this isn’t really travel news. I love your site for travel news, not political commentary (neither right, left, nor centrist). Thanks!
Why is this a story
Senate report, Airports, safety, security – sounds travel related to me. When I see a story that isn’t interesting, I just click on. You should try it, perhaps it’ll help address your TDS issues.
It’s completely within the realm of travel and appropriate to be reported on by a travel blogger who reports on any other news worthy story about airports and airlines. Geez, tell me who you voted for without telling me… why the pushback to protect the senile old man who is no longer in the WH?
This is a story. Airports need to be safe. Having a bunch of unvetted people sleeping in an airport? BTW during that entire open border mess I was at the TUS airport. It was a zoo. Unknown illegals from everywhere around the world being given a ticket by Catholic Charities and no one knows who these people are and what they’re intent is. We have this multi billion dollar TSA apparatus to supposedly keep us “safe” but we put unknown, unvetted people into that same space and onto planes.
Regardless of Trump, “alt-right” concerns etc – I don’t know if Americans understand that for most of the rest of the world (except some in Europe maybe) this is all odd.
Why would you purposely allow a situation like this with out of control migration into your country?
What benefits are there for that country out of that?
Just doesn’t make any sense.
Key word. “alleged “.
Is there a story involving immigration that is not “tailor made for Fox News”? Immigration in this country is completely broken and the vigilante human trafficking in the name of border security policy is really the only possible outcome if you consider that one side has absolutely zero incentive to solve this problem through legislation.
“I believe that we should have far more immigration than we do today.”
This is such an uneducated take on multiple levels, it’s hard to find a place to start.
You’re arguing the U.S. should dramatically increase immigration, but even many countries with strong national identities and strict security concerns — like Israel — maintain very controlled immigration systems. They manage borders tightly, vet entrants carefully, and limit pathways to residency unless they fit very specific criteria. If a country that emphasizes national security, cultural preservation, and resource management thinks carefully about how many people it can realistically absorb, it seems reasonable for the U.S. to do the same.
This poor take takes no note of how it harms housing, labor, security, social services, infrastructure, and the environment.
This reeks of an ivory tower mentality.