Biden's administration forced airports to house illegal immigrants despite security warnings

A report from the United States Senate caused strong criticism against the Biden administration, accusing it of having exerted pressure on airports across the country to convert aviation facilities into makeshift shelters for migrants, despite repeated internal warnings about risks to security and the functioning of air transportation.

The 47-page report, titled "Flight Risk," was published by the Senate Commerce Committee and indicates that the decision had been driven from the White House.

According to the document, the administration ordered the Department of Transportation (DOT) and several of its agencies, including the FAA, FMCSA, and FTA, to identify available spaces in federal and local airports to house or process newly arrived illegal immigrants.

Internal emails cited in the report reflect surprise and concern among staff: an FAA official described the request as an "immediate" instruction coming from the White House, while another DOT employee acknowledged that the measure was "potential Fox News material," showing that even within the federal apparatus there was awareness of the controversial nature of the directive.

According to the report, at least 11 airports, including Logan (Boston), O'Hare (Chicago), and JFK (New York), were urged or pressured to enable terminals, hangars, or auxiliary buildings.

FAA officials acknowledged that this unconventional use of airport facilities would normally require formal authorization due to federal grant rules, but the committee states that such regulations were ignored "most of the time," which, according to investigators, exposed avoidable security vulnerabilities.

Warnings from the airports themselves would not have stopped the measure either. Massport, operator of Boston Logan, warned that the infrastructure "is not designed or equipped" to handle the reception of migrants and that the decision could create security consequences. Nevertheless, up to 352 migrants spent the night in Terminal E, generating expenses close to $780,000 solely for security, cleaning, and transportation.

At Chicago O'Hare, the situation was even more complex: up to 900 illegal immigrants were housed in a bus terminal for months. During that period, police recorded 329 service calls and 26 arrests, which included cases of theft, disorderly conduct, and a death investigation.

Local authorities admitted that asylum seekers were not restricted to the designated area, which increased concerns about environmental control.

The report also highlights a security incident in 2024 at JFK, when an Ecuadorian citizen bypassed a security checkpoint and accessed a restricted area near two runways; when detained, he was carrying a box cutter and scissors. For the authors of the report, this episode symbolizes the risks that could have been exacerbated under the policy analyzed.

Beyond the airports, the committee keeps that DOT agencies were directed to support operations related to migrants in other areas, from preparing informational brochures to coordinating interstate transportation. The FTA also had encouraged reminding local transportation networks that they could use federal funds to transport these migrants.

The committee concludes that the Biden administration engaged in a "dangerous diversion" of resources and that its decisions "made airports and aviation less safe," citing the presence of illegal immigrants in terminals, the transportation of insufficiently screened individuals, and the reassignment of federal agents to the border.

Senator Ted Cruz, chairman of the committee, stated that the report reveals how the government "co-opted" federal agencies and local authorities to manage migrants "at the taxpayer's expense" and "putting American citizens at risk."