Markwayne Mullin wants to pull customs processing at sanctuary cities that 'won’t enforce immigration law,' which could devastate the travel industry

He told Fox’s Sean Hannity, “We’re currently drawing up plans to say, listen, in these sanctuary cities where the local radical left democrats aren’t allowing us to do our job and enforce federal laws then we shouldn’t be processing international flights into their cities either because they don’t want us to enforce immigration but they want us to process immigration at their facilities. Nothing about that makes sense to me.”

What are sanctuary cities?

So, what are these “sanctuary cities” Mullins intends on targeting?

There is no singular definition of sanctuary cities, but the term generally refers to cities in which there is policy in place that limits the extent to which a local/state government will share information with federal immigration law officers. Newark is one of these cities, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Sanctuary cities have been a target of President Trump for a while. On his first day back in office, he signed an Executive Order that said the Attorney General and Homeland Security Secretary should ensure that sanctuary cities “do not receive access to Federal funds.”

Beyond the political consequences that removing customs from these airports would cause, this poses risks for the travel industry, too.

What might this mean for the travel industry?

The list of sanctuary cities is long, and features many popular international travel hubs like Chicago, Boston and Philadelphia.

In a statement to CNBC, trade association Airlines for America said, “Reducing [Customs and Border Protection] staffing at major airports would have a devastating effect on the airline and tourism industries, causing a significant operational disruption to carriers, travelers and the flow of international cargo.” American Airlines, Delta and United are all members of Airlines for America.

With major travel hubs operating out of sanctuary cities, this situation could disrupt the finances and livelihood of people working in the travel, hospitality and tourism industry, which accounts for many Americans. According to World Travel and Tourism Council’s latest Economic Impact Research, in 2025, the travel and tourism sector in the U.S. supported 20.4 million jobs.

The U.S. Travel Association also told CNBC that Mullin confirmed in a meeting with the group that the administration is considering withdrawing customs officers. The group also said it would have “devastating consequences for the travel industry and communities that depend on international visitation.”