Officials with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are suspending two travel programs beginning Sunday amid a partial government shutdown that is being blamed on Democrats.
The news surrounds the suspension of TSA PreCheck and Global Entry that offer some travelers a faster airport security experience, Fox News reported Sunday.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is pointing the finger at Democrat lawmakers.
“This is the third time that Democrat politicians have shut down this department during the 119th Congress. Shutdowns have serious real world consequences, not just for the men and women of DHS and their families who go without a paycheck, but it endangers our national security,” she told Fox.
The TSA website said its pre-check program helps “trusted travelers” move through the airport with ease via dedicated lanes after they enroll.
Per the Fox article, “The third government shutdown in under half a year began on Feb. 14 after Democrats and Republicans were at an impasse on reaching a deal regarding President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.”
“DHS was the only department left without federal funding after Democrats walked away from a bipartisan plan released last month in response to the deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal law enforcement agents in Minneapolis during anti-ICE demonstrations,” the outlet said.
In a statement posted February 12, a TSA senior official said, “The government shutdown will cease pay for all of TSA’s more than 63,000-person workforce and suspend non-essential services. Over 99% of that workforce resides in communities across the country.”
“Democrats should fund the department and stop punishing our workforce and the everyday travelers they serve. A prolonged shutdown could result in significant attrition and increased callout rates of our officers, including noticeable impacts at airports, including delays, longer wait times and cancelled flights,” the statement read:
On Saturday, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) said the DHS shutdown “is nothing more than people that are afraid of the base to just explain to them that shutting down the entire DHS will have no impact or make those kinds of reforms for ICE,” according to Breitbart News.