The six-week-old Department of Homeland Security shutdown is hinging not only on what lawmakers do in the Capitol, but on how they get there.
Members of Congress are some of America’s most frequent fliers, giving them an up-close look at the shutdown’s most dramatic impacts on Americans — the long airport security lines caused by TSA staffing shortages.
The juxtaposition of the elected jet-setters, who can take advantage of some unusual perks as they travel, with growing disruptions for everyday travelers has emerged as the most potent point of pressure as the standoff wears on.
“Generally, when elected officials have to suffer the consequences of their own inaction, it tends to provide a motive for action,” Rep. Kevin Kiley, a California independent, said Thursday.
President Donald Trump announced Thursday evening he would sign an executive order to pay TSA agents, but as prospects for a shutdown-ending deal ebbed and flowed in recent weeks, airports became politically fraught spaces for members.
Many have made clear they are waiting in lines alongside everyone else, some have proposed legislation to enshrine that principle and at least one partisan confrontation has taken place on airport property.
In a viral blow-up last week outside the airport in Austin, Texas, Democratic Rep. Greg Casar crashed an event where GOP Sen. John Cornyn was handing out hamburgers to TSA agents missing paychecks amid the funding lapse. Casar blasted Cornyn for opposing legislation that would fund TSA without providing funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“My experience at the airport speaking with TSA agents is that several that I’ve spoken with just want to see us pass a TSA-only bill and have our debate about ICE separately,” Casar said in an interview.
Cornyn then introduced legislation to end “special treatment” for members of Congress at airports by requiring that lawmakers use the same screening procedures as other travelers and banning federal funds from being used to give members expedited security screenings. The legislation passed the Senate unanimously but has not been taken up in the House.
“As many Americans probably don’t know … airports around the country allow Members of Congress to bypass the usual TSA security screening process at airports,” Cornyn said in a statement. “This should end today.”
The special security arrangements are just some of the air-travel privileges that lawmakers can enjoy. Lawmakers have been known to skip to the front of screening lines, and many take advantage of special security escorts as they move through airports.
Major airlines offer special reservation booking privileges to members of Congress and their staff, giving them direct lines with dedicated personnel devoted to handling the needs of 535 congressional offices. Some allow members to book multiple flights on the same day without penalty, giving them options in case a vote runs late or another delay arises.
Delta, the largest U.S. carrier, said Tuesday it was suspending airport escorts for lawmakers and assistance from special “red coat” agents in light of the ongoing shutdown. The airline’s dedicated “Capital Desk” reservations line remains open.
Even before the shutdown, airports have been political hazards for members of Congress. Most infamously, former Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in a 2007 bathroom sex sting inside the Minneapolis airport, effectively ending his career. Former Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) and Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) were both cited after trying to bring firearms through security checkpoints.
More recently, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) sparked a political firestorm after she was alleged to have verbally abused Charleston, South Carolina, airport workers in October after a mix-up involving her security escort. The widely publicized incident was seen as harming her campaign for governor.
The notion of lawmakers getting special air travel perks has gone viral in several instances in recent days as airport security lines have grown.
Proclaiming her support for Cornyn’s measure Thursday, Rep. Ashley Hinson of Iowa reposted a video showing old, pre-shutdown videos of Mace and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) being escorted through airports.
“Neither Republicans or Democrats should be skipping the line while constituents are facing 4+ hour waits across the country,” she said.
Virtually all of the more than 20 lawmakers POLITICO interviewed Thursday about the airport chaos expressed sympathy for the unpaid agents, and many took pains to emphasize they had been inconvenienced alongside everyone else.
“My staff has been crushed. I got crushed a couple times. I got caught in the mess,” said Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.), who frequently flies out of Atlanta, America’s busiest airport. “First time I walked in, I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, pandemonium.’”
Utah Republican Rep. Burgess Owens, who flies out of Salt Lake City, another Delta hub, said in an interview he does not use any special airline offerings for lawmakers and said he was glad those services are paused.
“Across the board, we should be living the same experience and pain that we give to other people,” he said.
“I don’t think we deserve any special perks,” added Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.), who said the priority should be “making sure our constituents … can get through the line.”
There is, however, another point of bipartisan consensus — that the airport chaos is the other party’s fault.
“Democrats have proposed that we fund [TSA] fully,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said, referring to bills that would provide standalone funding for the agency. “Trump just refuses to take the deal.”
Speaker Mike Johnson made the opposite case in a Fox News interview Thursday afternoon.
“If you’re waiting in line at the airport, it’s because Democrats are refusing to fund the government,” he said.
Oriana Pawlyk contributed to this report.
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