A top TSA official warned that security problems at airports are likely to get worse before they get better due to the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown — as he blasted Congress for “holding” the agency hostage.
Adam Stahl, the acting Deputy TSA Administrator, warned Thursday that airports could be forced into suspending operations due to mass callouts that have led to widespread flight disruptions.
“Callout rates are one of many factors that help to inform our security footprint at every single airport, but again I can tell you, this is going to get worse before it gets better, particularly if we don’t have a resolution within the coming days and weeks,” he said on NewsNation’s “The Hill.”
Stahl wouldn’t comment on how many airports could be affected, but warned the impact on smaller hubs could be severe.
“And so again, small airports may be particularly impacted because they have fewer lanes and they have fewer people, and so, if a certain three or four out of 10 employees call out, we may, to ensure we’re not degrading security, we may have to temporarily suspend operations at those airports,” he said.
The shutdown is in its fifth week — while Democrats and Republicans appear no closer to a compromise.
Democrats have put forward bills that would see certain agencies within DHS funded – but not the likes of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Last week, Senate Democrats blocked a bill that would restore funding for the fourth time, prolonging the saga.
The White House claims such efforts would put Americans in danger – and Stahl lashed out at Congress.
“To hold an entire department hostage, particularly over policy concerns, is, frankly, reckless, and it’s, I really think it’s, it threatens, really the foundational, you know, job of Congress at large to fund the appropriations process, to fund the executive branch,” he said.
Airport security agents are being forced to work without pay, which Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian described as “inexcusable.”
The standoff in Washington has left about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers working without pay since mid-February.
More than 5,000 flights nationwide were delayed Thursday – on top of the 9,000 flights affected Tuesday and 7,000 Wednesday, according to FlightAware.
Scores of travelers were seen waiting in long lines at Houston’s George Bush International Airport.
According to the Houston Chronicle, flight passengers faced three-hour wait times for TSA screenings.
Alerts warning travelers to expect longer TSA wait times due to the staffing shortage were displayed on screens inside the terminal.
Travelers are encountering delays because fewer TSA officers are manning security checkpoints.
On Tuesday, 40.8 per cent of TSA staffers at Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport called out, as did almost 36 per cent at Louis Armstrong New Orleans airport.
Data from Atlanta airport saw more than 34 per cent of staff call out on Tuesday and this number rose to about 38 per cent, as reported by CBS News.
Cameron Cochems, a TSA union steward and lead officer in Boise, Idaho, said those on the ground are in the dark when the DHS shutdown will end – and said it’s impacting morale.
“The morale is getting worse by the day because no one knows when this is gonna end,” he said.
Travelers are “waiting in line because the government can’t do their job and it’s ruining people’s lives.”
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