The press reports are
horrifying: 95 year-old women humiliated; children molested; disabled people
abused; men and women subjected to unwarranted groping and touching of their
most private areas; involuntary radiation exposure. If the perpetrators were
a gang of criminals, their headquarters would be raided by SWAT teams and
armed federal agents. Unfortunately, in this case the perpetrators are armed
federal agents. This is the sorry situation ten years after the creation of
the Transportation Security Administration.
The requirement that Americans
be forced to undergo this appalling treatment simply for the
"privilege" of traveling in their own country reveals much about
how the federal government feels about our liberties. The unfortunate fact
that we put up with this does not speak well for our willingness to stand up
to an abusive government.
Many Americans continue to
fool themselves into accepting TSA abuse by saying "I don't mind giving
up my freedoms for security." In fact, they are giving up their
liberties and not receiving security in return. Last week, for example, just
days after an elderly cancer victim was forced to submit to a cruel and
pointless TSA search, including removal of an adult diaper, a Nigerian
immigrant somehow managed stroll through TSA security checks and board a
flight from New York to LA -- with a stolen, expired boarding pass and an
out-of-date student ID as his sole identification! He was detained and
questioned, only to be released to do it again 5 days later! We should not be
surprised to find government ineptitude and indifference at the TSA.
At the time the TSA was being
created I strongly opposed federalization of airline security. As I wrote in
an article back in 2001:
"Congress should be
privatizing rather than nationalizing airport security. The free market can
and does produce excellent security in many industries. Many
security-intensive industries do an outstanding job of maintaining safety
without depending on federal agencies. Nuclear power plants, chemical plants,
oil refineries, and armored money transport companies all employ private
security forces that operate very effectively. No government agency will ever
care about the bottom-line security and profitability of the airlines more
than the airlines themselves. Airlines cannot make money if travelers and
flight crews are afraid to fly, and in a free market they would drastically
change security measures to prevent future tragedies. In the current
regulatory environment, however, the airlines prefer to relinquish all
responsibility for security to the government, so that they cannot be held
accountable for lapses in the future."
What we need is real
privatization of security, but not phony privatization with the same TSA
screeners in private security firm uniforms still operating under the
"guidance" of the federal government. Real security will be
achieved when the airlines are once again in charge of protecting their property
and their passengers.
In the meantime, this week I
am introducing the American Traveler Dignity Act, which establishes that
airport security screeners are not immune from any US law regarding physical
contact with another person, making images of another person, or causing
physical harm through the use of radiation-emitting machinery on another
person. It means they are not above laws the rest of us must obey. As we
continue to see more and more outrageous stories of TSA abuses and failures,
I hope that my colleagues in the House will listen to their constituents and
join with me to support this legislation.
