The Border Shutdown Walked Into an Airport and Lost.
65% want TSA funded. 51% oppose ICE in terminals. The DHS shutdown split into two liabilities 60 points apart.
March 23, 2026 | 3 min read
Fund TSA. Stop holding airport security hostage to a border fight. Net +46 on standalone TSA funding. Net −14 on ICE at airports. That’s a 60-point spread in the same survey, from the same voters, on the same day.
Tavern Research tracks voter opinion in real time using daily online surveys. Numbers below are from our Public Pulse series, fielded March 21–23.
The DHS shutdown was supposed to be a border story. It’s become an airport story. When asked whether Congress should fund the Transportation Security Administration separately from the broader DHS standoff, 65% of voters say yes. 19% say no. Net +46. In the same March 23 survey (n=556), ICE operating at airports—armed immigration agents in commercial terminals—polls at 51% oppose vs. 37% support (net −14). The administration tied two issues together. Voters untied them—and picked a side on each.
The TSA number is a governance finding, not an immigration finding. The survey’s partisan composition runs 38% Republican, 34% Democrat, 26% Independent. A net +46 on that sample means this is cross-partisan consensus—not a base response. Voters want the planes to run. They don’t want armed ICE agents substituted for the TSA screeners they’re accustomed to.
The finding replicated across three independent surveys. March 21 and March 22 surveys (n=553 each) both returned 70% support vs. 17% oppose (net +53). Today’s 65/19 represents a slight moderation but still sits at near-consensus level. The direction has not moved once.
The conflicting administration explanations aren’t helping. The survey presented Tom Homan’s and Sean Duffy’s competing rationales for the ICE deployment—and only 12% of voters said they were unsure, meaning most have already made up their minds. The confusion at the top isn’t creating space for the policy. It’s hardening opposition to it.
The airport disruption story still has room to grow. ICE-airport salience sits at 46% major vs. 45% minor as of March 22—essentially a coin flip. As spring travel ramps up and the shutdown drags on, that number will likely tilt. The TSA finding is already baked in at near-consensus. The ICE-at-airports number is still forming—and moving in one direction.
The message testing confirms the economic-disruption frame is driving both stories. The March 22 MaxDiff found “Gas prices are spiking because Trump keeps escalating without a plan” winning at 70.2%. The airport and gas price stories are being processed through the same lens: the administration is creating disruptions that cost voters time and money. TSA is the latest exhibit.
What This Means in 30 Seconds
For campaigns: The DHS shutdown is now two fights. Lean into the TSA fight—it’s +46 and rising. The airport security argument has nothing to do with immigration ideology, which is exactly why it works.
For lawmakers: A standalone TSA funding bill has the widest positive margin of any policy tested this week. It’s a vote you can take and explain in one sentence.
For advocates: The 60-point spread between TSA funding and ICE at airports is the number. Use it. The administration handed you an argument where the public isn’t split—they’re at near-consensus.
Tavern Research Public Pulse survey, online panel, 556 respondents, fielded March 23, 2026. Replicated at 553 respondents on March 21 and March 22.
Want this data for your district? Email data@tavernresearch.com →
