Among them was congressman, civil rights leader, and Trump foe John Lewis, who pledged to "sit down and stay a while" when he wasn't happy with the answers coming from immigration officials.

According to reporters at the airport, when a US Customs and Border Protection official did not disclose the number of people being held, Lewis responded, "Why don't we just sit down and stay a while."

Lewis is renowned for leading famous sit-in protests during the civil rights era, as well as on the floor of the House of Representatives for gun control.

"As far as we can tell there are no written protocols that have been issued to the Customs and Border Protection officers," Johnson said, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "So they are kind of winging it, like we are winging it. And it puts them at a disadvantage because, of course, they have a job to do to keep up safe under normal conditions."