After flirting with another avoidable travel mess, the House has passed the Senate’s DHS funding bill, removing a major cloud hanging over TSA operations ahead of the busy summer travel season.
House Passes Senate DHS Funding Bill, Sparing Travelers More TSA Chaos
The U.S. House of Representatives has approved the Senate-passed Department of Homeland Security funding bill, sending it to President Trump for signature and ending the latest round of brinkmanship over an agency that directly touches millions of travelers. DHS, which oversees the Transportation Security Administration, was just days away from not being able to pay TSA employees (again).
We have seen severe checkpoint delays this year at several airports as staffing shortages and employee call-outs stretched operations thin during the partial-shutdown. The last thing travelers needed was more uncertainty over pay and funding just weeks before summer demand ramps up.
TSA Was Already Showing Stress Cracks
This was never an abstract budget fight and certainly not a fight over TSA. Instead, TSA workers became pawns in a fight over funding for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.
When TSA staffing slips, passengers feel it within days through longer lines, slower baggage screening, and missed flights. Like many Washington disputes, this pain is felt by the public (while Members of Congress continued to enjoy preferential treatment to avoid congestion and lines).
That is why Congress playing games with DHS funding is so irresponsible. In the face of surging oil prices and lingering air traffic control shortages, undermining airport security staffing on top of that would have been another self-inflicted wound.
Rather than continue the standoff, House lawmakers ultimately passed the Senate bill (something Republican vowed they would never without more ICE funding, but caved when President Trump told them to).
Good. At some point, governing has to matter more than political theater, especially when the consequences hit millions of travelers, not to mention the employees themselves (or the politicians come November). This is a victory for democracy and a victory for Congressional accountability over masked ICE agents roaming streets and terrorizing U.S. citizens…how nice it was to see ICE agents step up and help at crowded airports during the shutdown…without masks and with a smile on their faces. This is what public servants do…
> Read More: Members Of Congress Caught Skipping TSA Lines During Shutdown Chaos
> Read More: ICE Agents May Remain At Airports Even After TSA Workers Are Paid
CONCLUSION
The House passage of the Senate DHS funding bill is good news for travelers because TSA did not need another manufactured crisis. With summer approaching and airport systems already stretched, the smartest move Congress made was simply avoiding making things worse. Thank you Congress…better late than never.
“Delayed, but not denied.”
Give this one to the liberals, as always the GOP caved when it mattered.
Oh well, we have 2 years of nothing getting done coming up and when government does nothing we all win.
now tell us the reforms to ICE that the blue team thought they would get for all of this? precisely none.
the red team will fund the rest of DHS including TSA and CBP through reconciliation which won’t be stopped.
It was all a useless effort to accomplish something that failed.
So true, why would the blue team waste time upholding the constitution. Ridiculous.
I disagree with the members pushing those 10 ICE reforms on a lot of issues. But, only two of those reforms were wrong. Law enforcement should be allowed to mask and should be required only to wear an ID that can be used internally. Otherwise, those opposing legal actions by ICE officers will harass or harm the officer or their families. Also, I disagree that ICE should have places where they can’t arrest criminals.
I am happy that you can feel gracious to thank our lawmakers for their work. I cannot quite get there to be optimistic . With bankruptcies looming and fuel prices spiking the summer seems rather dismal