Philly DA threatens to arrest ICE agents if they break the law 

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner is escalating a warning that’s getting national attention — and directly aimed at ICE agents now stationed at airports.  

His message is simple: Follow the law in Philadelphia, or face prosecution.  

“This is how it works. You commit crimes within the jurisdiction that is the city and county of Philadelphia, I prosecute you. That is how it works. No, I don’t take a phone call from president saying, ‘Let them go.’ No, the president cannot pardon you.”  

“And yes, I will put you in handcuffs and I will put you in a courtroom and, if necessary, I will put you in a jail cell if you decide to make the terrazzo floor of this airport anything like what you did in the streets of Minneapolis, which involved the criminal homicide of unarmed, innocent people. We are not having that.”  

This all comes as Donald Trump deploys ICE officers to airports nationwide — not for immigration raids, but to help fill gaps left by TSA workers during the ongoing Homeland Security shutdown. Keep in mind they’re not trained to do screening or airport security, so they are doing things like crowd control.  

Hundreds of TSA agents have reportedly quit in recent weeks, and thousands more are calling out. The strain is visible at airports across the country.  

Unlike TSA, though, ICE agents are being paid, through funding tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, while the rest of the Department of Homeland Security remains caught in a political standoff. Democrats want reforms to how ICE operates, including judicial warrants, body cameras, and banning face coverings. Republicans are holding the line, refusing to separate ICE funding from the broader DHS budget.  

So what we’re watching is more than just a staffing solution at airports. It’s a collision between federal authority and local enforcement.  

Krasner is essentially drawing a boundary and reminding federal agents that being in Philadelphia doesn’t put them above local law. District attorneys do have prosecutorial discretion within their jurisdictions, even when it comes to federal officers accused of crimes.  

At the same time, the federal government has broad authority over immigration enforcement. That tension, between local control and federal power, is not the solution.  

Meanwhile, the president isn’t signaling compromise.  

He told reporters he’s “pretty much not happy” with any deal on the table, and posted on Truth Social, “I may call up the National Guard for more help.” Meaning, this could expand beyond ICE agents — we could be looking at National Guard troops showing up at airports, too.  

At that point, this stops being just about long security lines or even immigration policy. It’s about how far federal and local governments are willing to go to assert control.  

And in the middle of all of it are everyday Americans, just trying to get from point A to point B, now caught in the dysfunction.  

So, while agencies clash and politicians dig in, Congress still hasn’t done the most basic part of its job: figure out how to fund the government. The refusal to negotiate, the unwillingness to separate out critical services like TSA and FEMA, is prolonging a problem that didn’t have to reach this point.  

The reality is that the longer this continues, the more the public pays the price for it. 

Lindsey Granger is a NewsNation contributor and co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising.” This column is an edited transcription of her on-air commentary.   

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