TSAFormer presidential nominee calls for abolishment of TSA and DHS

1972 Presidential candidate George McGovern // Source: tnr.com

George McGovern, the former Senator from South Dakota and the Democratic presidential candidate in 1972, is calling for the abolishment of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as well as DHS.

In his new book, “What It Means to be a Democrat,” McGovern describes existing airport security measures as “ridiculous.” He writes, “We live with too much fear and not enough common sense.”

“The whole silliness of our response is exemplified by what has happened at our airports,” he argues. “Once sources of architectural pride, air terminals are now barricaded behind concrete. Inside we are required to remove our shoes and belts, hand over our gels and liquids and submit to body scans — with the ante being raised each time there’s a new scare.”

With the tenth anniversary of the creation of TSA approaching on 19 November, McGovern is not the only one criticizing the agency. Representative John Mica (R – Florida), one of the authors of the bill that created TSA and a vocal critic of the agency, released a report on Wednesday that argues TSA needs to be drastically reformed.

The Congressional report, titled “A Decade Later: A Call for TSA Reform,” blasted TSA calling it “bloated” and “inefficient.”

In unveiling the report, Mica said Congress never intended the agency to balloon into an organization with 65,000 employees, “top heavy” with bureaucrats.”

“I can tell you, in our wildest dreams … no one ever envisioned 4,000 administrative personnel in Washington, D.C., making on average … almost $104,000, and then nearly another 10,000 out in the field,” Mica said.

McGovern expressed similar distaste for TSA in his book writing, “What upsets me the most is when I see an elderly woman trying her darnedest to comply with these ridiculous rules. As if she could possibly be harboring an explosive in her suitcase.”

“Now that our initial distress over 9/11 has dissipated, I suggest that we stop this needless hassle, a palliative that costs $7 billion a year and rising,” he said.

In his book, McGovern also blasted DHS.

“To my mind, in fact, the entire Homeland Security department — with its more than 200,000 employees and more than $42 billion budget — ought to be dissolved,” he argued. “The third largest Cabinet department, it sprang from 9/11’s shock waves to put the agencies that deal with counterterrorism, including airport safety, under one roof.”

“I believe we should leave the business of protecting the American public from terrorist attacks to the FBI, the CIA and our police departments,” McGovern continued. “The FBI has a vibrant counterterrorism branch but somehow manages to stay independent.”

In response to Mica’s congressional report, Greg Soule, a spokesman for TSA defended the agency, calling the report “an unfortunate disservice to the dedicated men and women of TSA who are on the front lines every day protecting the traveling public.”

Soule added that the U.S. aviation system is now “safer, stronger, and more secure than it was 10 years ago.”