Mullin weighs using airport customs as leverage against sanctuary cities

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DHS Sec Mullin: We're afraid Democrats will try to 'hold the country hostage' again in September

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin discusses the partial government shutdown and how he will run DHS differently than his predecessor and more on 'Special Report.'

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the federal government could stop processing customs at airports in sanctuary cities as a way to pressure them on immigration enforcement.

Such a move could effectively lock out global travelers from major cities like New York, New Orleans and Philadelphia, placing a damper on incoming commerce and economic benefits that could directly affect those cities’ business environments and tax bases.

Mullin told "Special Report" that as sanctuary cities refuse to cooperate with DHS to enforce immigration law, the agency may need to consider that when providing services to those cities.

"This one area we may take a look at is some of these cities have international airports," he said. "If they're a sanctuary city, should they really be processing customs into their city?"

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An ICE officer works at a TSA checkpoint at Pittsburgh International Airport in Imperial, Pa., on Thursday, March 26, 2026. (Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press)

Many sanctuary cities did not respond to requests for comment, even as Mullin said such jurisdictions are on their face "not lawful" and should not consider themselves absolved of certain federal policies.

International airports and their customs apparatus present a potential leverage point, given that DHS controls them and oversees enforcement agencies like ICE, CBP and USCIS that sanctuary cities oppose and hinder.

Fox News Digital reached out Tuesday to the offices of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani — whose city hosts both LaGuardia and JFK — Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Denver Mayor Michael Johnston, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker and New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno, as well as Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who recently held a conference at Philadelphia International Airport to again threaten to prosecute ICE agents.

As of late Wednesday afternoon, none had provided comment.

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ICE agents arrive at JFK airport in New York City, N.Y., Monday, March 23, 2026. The agents are being brought in to assist TSA agents amid staffing shortages due to the government shutdown. (David Dee Delgado for Fox News)

In his interview, Mullin said that the subject needs to be given serious consideration.

"If they're a sanctuary city, and they're receiving international flights, and we're asking them to partner with us at the airport, but once they walk out of the airport they're not going to enforce immigration policy, maybe we need to have a really hard look at that because we need a focus on cities that want to work with us," he said.

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Mullin added that with Democrats continuing the partial shutdown of his agency, something must give.

"We are going to have to start prioritizing things at some point," he said. "[They’re] wanting to defund Customs & Border [Protection] — well, who processes those individuals when they come off the planes?"

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The secretary said he is not staking out any position outside of his congressionally mandated bounds, and that he is not trying to "push those" but that he is simply trying to convince all municipalities to partner with his agency.

Fox News Digital's Nora Moriarty contributed to this report.