Could ICE at airports be 'test run' for polling places, Steve Bannon asks

Former White House chief strategist and conservative podcaster Steve Bannon believes ICE's current presence at U.S. airports could be a "test case" for their involvement in upcoming midterm election. On a March 23 episode of his podcast, "

Bannons War Room," Bannon asked lawyer and The Article III Project founder and president Mike Davis if ICE's deployment to airports could be a "test run" for ICE's involvement in the 2026 midterm election.

“I think we should have ICE agents at the polling places because if you're an illegal alien, you can't vote, right? It's against the law, it's a federal crime for you to vote in federal elections," Davis said in response. ”

If you're an American citizen, you should be happy that ICE is there because you're not going to have illegal aliens canceling out your vote." To conclude the thought, Bannon remarked: "

Pick them out of line starting today and maybe lines get shorter." President Donald Trump deployed ICE agents to more than a dozen major U.S. airports on Monday, March 23 after more than 400 TSA officers resigned amid the partial government shutdown that began in mid-February. Live: Airport leaders urge Congress to end TSA funding standoff.

What we know: Which airports is ICE going to? What will agents be doing? Who is Steve Bannon?

Bannon, 72, formerly served as the White House chief strategist for seven months of Trump's first presidential term in 2017. The White House claimed Bannon's leave was a mutual agreement but his departure followed a tumultuous few days in which he received public criticism after he criticized the president's positions on North Korea.

In 2024, Bannon served four months in federal prison after he defied a subpoena from Congress investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. Last year, Bannon made headlines after he was mentioned in a round of Jeffrey Epstein records, multiple photos showing the conservative talking head spending time with the late sex offender. Who is Mike Davis?

Davis, 48, is a conservative lawyer and founder and president of The Article III Project, a conservative legal group that advocates for conservative judicial nominees. Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea?

Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.