TSA agents selling blood plasma and sleeping in cars, official says

Some Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents are selling blood plasma to make ends meet while the Department of Homeland Security’s 38-day shutdown continues, TSA Acting Administrator Adam Stahl told reporters Tuesday.

“We have people sleeping in cars,” Stahl told reporters at Washington’s Reagan National Airport, referring to TSA workers. “I recently spoke with a single mother who had a three-year-old child with special needs and couldn’t afford the cost of her three-year-old’s care.”

Stahl also said some agents “drew blood so they could get gas on the way to work.”

The bleak situation comes as TSA agents across the country are forced to work without pay during a prolonged funding cut. More than 50,000 TSA personnel will miss their second full paycheck during the shutdown if the funding disruption is not resolved by Friday.

TRUMP SAYS ICE WILL BE DEPLOYED AT AIRPORTS ON MONDAY TO HELP TSA AFTER FUNDING CLOSE

Although talks to end the shutdown have gained momentum in the past 24 hours, Stahl warned that the impact of funding cuts on TSA agents will continue to worsen if the shutdown does not end soon.

“This is a very serious situation,” Stahl said. “The longer our people go without a paycheck, the more they won’t be able to get a job and the more they will quit jobs altogether.”

A shortage of TSA workers at major travel hubs across the country has led to hours-long wait times at airport security checkpoints. The ongoing spring break travel season could further worsen staffing restrictions at airports, Stahl said.

More than 400 TSA agents have resigned since the shutdown began Feb. 14.

“If Senate Democrats specifically don’t act, and don’t act now, this situation is going to get worse again before it gets better,” he said, adding that mass turnover of TSA workers is hurting the agency’s ability to prepare for the FIFA World Cup later this summer.

Some TSA agents began selling blood plasma for money during the partial government shutdown, Acting Administrator Adam Stahl said Tuesday. (Carl Court/Getty Images)

LIZ PEEK: VOTERS ARE TELLING CONGRESS TO ‘DO YOUR JOB’ AND ENDING THE DHS DEBATE

GOP lawmakers have criticized their Democratic colleagues for not supporting the DHS funding bill all year long as the party demands reforms to immigration enforcement. They allege that TSA agents, as well as thousands of other DHS employees employed by various subsidiaries, are victims of Democrats’ heavy-handed tactics.

“The men and women who work for TSA agents are American heroes,” Rep. Mark Alford, R-Mo., said Tuesday at Reagan National airport. “Would you still be employed if you were faced with your third paycheck and didn’t get paid?”

TSA agents were also forced to work without pay during a record-breaking 43-day shutdown in the fall of 2025.

Democrats, by contrast, accused Republicans of opposing legislation that would fund DHS, including the TSA, excluding the department’s immigration enforcement functions.

Rep. Mark Alford highlighted the financial difficulties of TSA agents during the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown during a press conference at Washington’s Reagan National Airport on Tuesday. (Getty Images)

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION

President Donald Trump responded to Democrats on Tuesday when asked about TSA agents working for more than a month without pay.

“They will do anything to hurt our country so they can win the midterms,” ​​Trump said.

Fox News Digital has reached out to TSA for comment.