WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump announced he will take executive action to pay 50,000 airport security workers to address staffing shortages at airports across the country. Trump instructed the Department of Homeland Security to immediately pay TSA agents to address the emergency situation and stop what he called "Democrat chaos" at the airports.

A partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security has lasted almost six weeks. The U.S. Senate failed for the seventh time to advance a bill to fund part of the Department of Homeland Security, while a deal to address airport security staff shortages has stalled in Congress.

Nearly 500 airport security officers have quit since the start of the partial government shutdown in February, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The acting head of the Transportation Security Administration described the current wait times as the highest in TSA history.

Passengers have reported missing flights after waiting for hours in airport security lines. Trump did not state where the funding to pay the TSA agents would come from when announcing his plan.