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News Travel in the News TSA Troubles For Congressman
| TSA Troubles For Congressman |
| Monday, 22 September 2008 | |
 If you think that government officials are exempt from the same airport security hassles that the rest of us face, think again. Well, most of the time anyway.For the past five years, U.S. Representative John Lewis (D-GA) has been stopped by Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) employees every time he’s gone through security, and then told that he has to submit to a second screening. This is because the name John R. Lewis appears on the FBI’s terrorism watch list, and Rep. Lewis’ name appears in one of the three categories of passengers – the one that says he’s been cleared. Yet he still continues to have his boarding pass flagged by airline personnel. According to a spokesman for the TSA, the fault lies with the airlines. An updated list is sent to the airlines every day, with names in three categories: The "no-fly" list is for those passengers denied boarding. The "selectee" list is for those passengers where suspicion is heightened and therefore they undergo further security screening before boarding. And the "cleared" list for those passengers who have experienced problems, in the past, but have been deemed safe to fly. The problem, say the TSA, is that airline employees often misread the status of the names, flagging passengers on the “cleared” list. Lewis, an 11-term congressman, wrote a letter to the TSA about his hassles, saying that if he’s going through this every time he flies, “you can only imagine what the average American suffers. “ The TSA offer a solution, however. According to spokesman Christopher White, they intend for the government to take over this job from the airlines. Wow, that should help. |
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| Last Updated ( Monday, 22 September 2008 ) |
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