In an extraordinary effort to inject politics into the travel experiences of millions of Americans, the Trump administration plans to display a video at airports across the United States that will blame Democrats for shortfalls in Transportation Security Administration workers’ wages due to the government shutdown.
People waiting in airport security lines will now encounter a new video of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem addressing the shutdown.
“TSA’s top priority is to ensure you have the most pleasant and efficient airport experience possible while keeping you safe,” he says. “However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations are affected and most of our TSA employees work without pay.”
The video was first obtained by Fox News.
The Department of Homeland Security responded to CNN’s questions about the video in a statement that noted that “public service video is spreading across the country” and then repeated the video’s language almost word for word.
“We will continue to do everything we can to avoid delays that affect your travel, and our hope is that Democrats will soon recognize the importance of opening the government,” the video concludes.
TSA checkpoints often include videos of government officials welcoming travelers and explaining procedures, but they typically do not contain political messages.
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