American Airports Refuse Homeland Security Video Faulting Democratic Party for Federal Closure

A number of major international airports across the United States, such as Phoenix's Sky Harbor, Las Vegas's Harry Reid Airport, Seattle–Tacoma, and Charlotte Douglas Airport in North Carolina, have opted to prevent a video from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that attributes responsibility to Democratic lawmakers for the continuing federal government shutdown from airing at their screening locations.

Legal Concerns Cited by Airport Authorities

Airport authorities in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Seattle, Portland, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Westchester, New York have declined to display the video content at screening areas, stating that the political statements could breach federal and state regulations, including the Hatch Act of 1939, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in partisan actions.

“Congressional Democrats decline to support funding for the U.S. government, and because of this, many of our functions are impacted, and most of our TSA staff are not receiving wages,” Noem stated in the video.

Portland Response

The Portland airport authority noted that it “did not consent to displaying the PSA in its present version, as we consider the federal law clearly prohibits utilization of government resources for political aims.” It added that state regulations in Oregon prohibits government staff from promoting or opposing any party affiliation and that agreeing to play this video would break Oregon law.

Las Vegas Statement

The Harry Reid International Airport also declined to show the TSA video on similar grounds, noting in a release that “its content included political messaging that was inconsistent with the neutral, educational purpose of the public service announcements typically displayed at security checkpoints” and also referenced the Hatch Act.

Explaining the Hatch Act

The Hatch Act of 1939 is a federal law that bans political activities by government employees to ensure that government programs remain unbiased.

Additional Airport Rejections

• Phoenix airport international airport stated that it “refused to display the video” to stay “consistent with airport policy,” which does not allow partisan material.
• The Port of Seattle, which manages Sea-Tac airport, similarly refused, pointing to “the partisan tone of the video.”
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport said that North Carolina municipal law and the airport’s policy for digital content “do not permit the video in question.” The airport also added that the Transportation Security Administration lacks ownership of any screens at its checkpoints and that its limited display monitors are reserved for wayfinding, travel information, and paid advertisements.

Westchester County Objection

Westchester County, in a statement, called the PSA “inappropriate, unacceptable, and out of line with the standards we expect from our federal leaders.”

“The public service announcement makes political the effects of a federal government shutdown on security operations,” the county executive stated, adding that the tone was “unnecessarily alarmist” and “erodes customer confidence.”

DHS Reply

A Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary, an agency representative, repeated the Secretary's wording to attribute fault to “political gamesmanship” in a statement, adding that “Democratic leaders will soon realize the importance of opening the government.”

Bipartisan Appeals for Resolution

The Port of Seattle commented that it continued to “encourage cooperative actions to end the government shutdown” and was working to identify methods to assist government workers working without pay during the shutdown.