A growing number of US airports have refused to play Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s TSA video blaming Democrats for the government shutdown.
The video was announced last week to replace TSA’s current announcement reminding passengers to use Real ID.
Seattle-Tacoma, Portland, Phoenix Sky Harbor, JFK, and LaGuardia airports are among the list that have refused to play Noem’s video warning passengers of changes and delays in airline operations.
In the ‘public service video,’ Noem addressed the camera.
‘It is TSA’s top priority to make sure that you have the most pleasant and efficient airport experience possible while we keep you safe,’ she said.
‘However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations are impacted and most of our TSA employees are working without pay.
‘We will continue to do all that we can to avoid delays that will impact you and our hope is that Democrats will soon recognize the importance of opening the government.’
Some airport spokespeople have condemned the video’s divisive political nature and others cited policies that prevent them from screening ‘politically partisan messages,’ according to WSAV.
Seattle and Portland cited the Hatch Act, which restricts federal employees from some kinds of political messaging.
Several US airports have declined to show a video of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blaming Democrats for the government shutdown
The video is meant to replace an announcement reminding passengers to use Real ID at airports across the country
‘We did not consent to playing the video in its current form, as we believe the Hatch Act clearly prohibits use of public assets for political purposes and messaging,’ said a spokesperson for Portland International Airport in a statement to WSAV.
However, Forbes reported that legal experts do not think it violates the law.
‘This is probably not a Hatch Act violation, because it’s not tied to an election,’ said senior ethics counsel at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Cynthia Brown.
‘But it’s entirely inappropriate to be using federal resources to message on a partisan basis and disparage the opposing political party.’
Officials at Phoenix Sky Harbor International airport told the Daily Mail that their ‘policy does not permit political content.’
Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas is one of the many that declines use of the video due to its ‘political messaging’
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport cited the Hatch Act as the reason they could not show the video
Westchester County Airport in New York State released a seething statement on their website, publicly acknowledging their decision not to use DHS’s new video.
‘It is inappropriate, unacceptable, and inconsistent with the values we expect from our nation’s top public officials,’ wrote Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins.
‘The PSA politicizes the impacts of a federal government shutdown on TSA Operations, and the County finds the tone to be unnecessarily alarmist.’
The complete list of refusals thus far is Seattle-Tacoma, Portland, Phoenix Sky Harbor, JFK, LaGuardia, Buffalo Niagara, Niagara Falls, Westchester County, Spokane, and Harry Reid International Airports and Springfield-Branson National Airport.
In the new video Noem said ‘Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations are impacted’
Many airline passengers have experienced delays thanks to understaffed airports and unpaid employees
Columbus, Philadelphia, and Indianapolis airports have also refused to play the video.
Some airports – including Boston Logan International Airport and Denver International Airport – have not been asked to play the video because they do not have the monitors for it.
Since the government’s October 1 shutdown, most TSA workers have worked unpaid causing an uptick in sick leave which slows airport operations. Reuters reported in the second week of the shutdown there were thousands of delays.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told the Daily Mail that TSA operations ‘remain largely unimpacted’ by the shutdown.
‘It’s unfortunate our workforce has been put in this position due to political gamesmanship,’ she said. ‘Our hope is that Democrats will soon recognize the importance of opening the government.’
TSA workers will continue to work without pay until Congress passes a plan to fund the government.
