Long Island MacArthur, Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty airports are not playing a video that the Transportation Security Administration requested all airports to display of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blaming Democrats in Washington for the government shutdown.
In the public service announcement-style video intended to play on screens near security lines, Noem says, “It is TSA’s top priority to make sure that you have the most pleasant and efficient airport experience as possible while we keep you safe. However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations are impacted, and most of our TSA employees are working without pay.”
Explaining why MacArthur Airport is not playing the video, airport commissioner Rob Schneider said in a statement: “As always, we support the TSA and their mission; however, due to the sensitive political nature surrounding the video, the airport is unable to play it.”
The Port Authority which operates Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty, said in a statement, “The Port Authority’s longstanding policies prevent airing of politically partisan messages at our facilities, so airports are not airing the video on airport-controlled screens.”
Some other airports across the country, including Oregon’s Portland International Airport, Washington’s Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Niagara Falls International Airport, Buffalo Niagara International Airport and Westchester County Airport have also refused to play the video, CNN reported.
It is unclear which airports are currently airing the video.
A spokesman for Albany International Airport said in a statement that TSA staff at that airport had displayed Noem’s video message on monitors there over the weekend, but they did so without prior notice to the Albany County Airport Authority, which owns the airport. The authority later took the video down.
“The statements made in the video raise questions about longstanding policies related to the Federal Hatch Act, which prohibits engaging in political activity while in an official capacity, including communication that blames, praises, or criticizes a specific political party or figure,” said spokesman Matt Hunter.
Galen Munroe, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, earlier told Newsday his union’s members are working without pay, and will receive partial paychecks on Oct. 14 covering only through Oct. 2.
The TSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Check back for updates on this developing story.