DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin during an interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier on Monday evening shared that he is considering the withdrawal of CBP customs services from sanctuary city airports if states continue limiting cooperation with ICE— a move that would cripple not only the economy but also FIFA revenues for Washington state.
“If they’re sanctuary cities, should they really be processing customs into their city? I mean, seriously, 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 to focus on cities that want to work with us,” Secretary Mullins told Baier.
He added, “Right now, remember, the Democrats are wanting to defund Customs and Border Patrol (CBP). Well, who processes those individuals and walk off the plane? And so I’m gonna have to be forced to make hard decisions.”
This move would devastate international operations at eattle-Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac), Washington state’s only major commercial international hub. Smaller general aviation (GA) airports with limited CBP capability would also lose services—Paine Field (PAE), Boeing Field (BFI), Bellingham (BLI), Spokane (GEG), and Skagit (BVS).
Without CBP officers for passport control, immigration, and customs processing no direct international flights could land or deplane passengers at SeaTac or any other Washington state airport. Airlines would have to cancel routes or reroute flights to other non-sanctuary U.S. airports with full CBP facilities (Idaho would be the closest).
All international cargo processing will be halted. SeaTac moves hundreds of thousands of metric tons annually (including perishables, high-tech goods, and e-commerce) requiring Customs clearance. Much of this freight would divert to other hubs in a non-sanctuary state such as Idaho.
With FIFA World Cup only two months away (June 15 is first Seattle-based game), passengers arriving from abroad would need to clear customs elsewhere first, then take a domestic connection to Seattle. Hundreds of thousands of people will be traveling from Belgium, Egypt, Australia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Iran to watch their team play at Lumen Field.
In 2025, SeaTac recorded 7.1 million international passengers from mainly Asia, Europe, Canada, and Mexico.
For Washington, if DHS were to pull Customs operations, the state’s sanctuary policies would deliver a massive self-inflicted economic blow — essentially shutting down the state’s primary international hub, threatens tens of thousands of jobs (direct, indirect, and induced), plus billions in economic activity.
Washington State passed the Keep Washington Workers Act (KWWA) during the 2019 Legislative Session which recodified state law ensuring “the state of Washington remains a place where the rights and dignity of all residents are maintained and protected in order to keep Washington working.”
The KWWA (RCW 43.17.425) does the following:
- Prohibits state and local law enforcement providing aid in federal civil immigration enforcement.
- Bans holding individuals in custody solely based on immigration status.
- Restricts sharing nonpublic personal information with federal immigration authorities.
- Limits interviewing or detaining people based only on immigration status, except in specific public safety scenarios.
Then-United States Attorney General Pam Bondi in August 2025 sent a cease and desist letter ordering Washington state to adhere to federal immigration enforcement efforts or risk federal cuts and criminal prosecution of officials over its sanctuary policies.
The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) letter cited Executive Order 14287, titled “Protecting American Communities from Criminal Aliens,” that President Donald J Trump signed on April 28, 2025, as the baseline of its affairs.
Defiant and standing up for what he called Washington state values, Governor Bob Ferguson said he will not be bullied.
“Washington State will not be bullied, or intimidated, by threats and legally baseless accusations,” said Gov. Ferguson. “In the America that I love, and taught my children to revere, we resolve our differences peacefully through public discourse and if necessary, through the courts, not by threatening political opponents with imprisonment.”
Bondi’s letter to Ferguson specifically identifies Washington state as engaging in sanctuary policies and practices that thwart federal immigration enforcement efforts, demanding a response by August 19, 2025, to commit to “complying with federal law” and identify “immediate initiatives you are taking to eliminate laws, policies, and practices that impede federal immigration enforcement.” She also shared that the DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are evaluating “options for adding immigration-related conditions to federal grants and contracts.”
Governor Ferguson, having been the former 12-year Attorney General of Washington State, in his official response letter to Bondi wrote that the letter “embarrasses and disgraces the officer of the United States Attorney General.”
“Washington State is proud to be a welcoming community that values immigrants’ and refugees’ contributions to our economy and out cultural fabric. We do so while accounting for and complying with applicable federal law. If you really believe Washington State is in conflict with controlling federal law, you would make some effort to explain that. You did not, because you cannot,” wrote Ferguson.
Ferguson’s response stated that he is prepared to “defend Washington” against any and all legal action the federal government attempts to pursue, adding that the state will not compromise its values, nor “bend the knee to the Trump Administration.”
Author: Mario Lotmore
