Fort Lauderdale, Florida – FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Some airports across the country are refusing to play a video containing a message from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blaming Democrats for causing this to happen. Federal government shutdown and its effects on TSA operations due to its political content.
Airports in Las Vegas, Charlotte, Atlanta, Phoenix, Seattle and others say the video conflicts with airport policy or regulations prohibiting political messages at their facilities.
Various government agencies, in emails to workers and on websites, have embraced this idea Language that blames Democrats Because of the closure, some experts believe it may be a violation of the Hatch Act of 1939, which restricts certain political activities of federal employees.
The lockdown has halted routine operations and I left the airports scrambling With flight disturbances. Democrats say any deal to reopen the government must meet their health care demands, and Republicans say they won’t negotiate until they agree to fund the government. Insurance premiums will double if Congress fails to renew the subsidy payments that expire on December 31.
In the video, Noem says TSA’s “top priority” is to help make travel fun and efficient while keeping passengers safe.
“However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations have been impacted, and most of our TSA employees are working without pay,” she added.
The Transportation Security Administration is part of the Department of Homeland Security. Nearly 61,000 of the agency’s 64,130 employees are required to continue working during the closure. The ministry said on Friday that the video will be disseminated at airports across the country.
A DHS spokeswoman responded to a request for comment on paraphrasing some of the message from Noem’s video.
“It is unfortunate that our workforce was put in this position because of political gamesmanship,” spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said. “Our hope is that Democrats will soon realize the importance of opening the government.”
Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas said it must “remain aware of the limitations imposed by the Hatch Act.”
“Under airport regulations, the terminals and surrounding areas are not designated public forums, and the airport’s intention is to avoid using the facility for political or religious advocacy,” the statement read.
Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins said the county north of New York City will not turn on the video at its local airport. In a statement, he called the video “inappropriate, unacceptable, and inconsistent with the values we expect of our nation’s senior public officials,” and said its tone was “unnecessarily inflammatory” regarding operations at the Westchester County Airport.
“At a time when we should be focusing on ensuring stability, cooperation and preparedness, this kind of messaging only serves to distract attention from the real issues and undermine public confidence,” he said. ___
Associated Press writer Ryo Yamate in Las Vegas contributed to this report.