Air travel in the United States is in crisis because of policy failures that have escalated from a nuisance into a national crisis. At Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, the busiest airport in the world, passengers faced security lines stretching for hours as TSA callout rates hit the highest since the shutdown began, with more than 3,200 officers nationwide failing to report to work. As the system buckles under this strain, the Trump administration is deploying ICE officers to stabilize operations, a practical response that has triggered immediate outrage from Democrats claiming it is unsafe or unlawful. The reality, however, is political: Democrats are leveraging the crisis to block standalone TSA funding unless ICE and Customs and Border Protection budgets are cut, turning stranded travelers into pawns in a broader fight over federal priorities.

This type of brinkmanship is irresponsible and a national security risk. Airports are designed for efficiency and convenience, but they are also high-risk, high-value targets that require structured, coordinated federal oversight to ensure screening, identity verification, perimeter control, and threat detection. As staffing levels collapse, internal pressure increases and vulnerabilities emerge, creating risks adversaries can exploit.

Political leverage is being applied to the most sensitive parts of our national infrastructure, and Americans are feeling the direct consequences. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy acknowledged that Democrats are refusing to pass standalone TSA funding unless Republicans strip all funding from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. Plainly, this means American security is being used as a bargaining chip in a broader political fight over immigration policy, and travelers are being forced to absorb the fallout.

TRUMP DEMANDS ‘SAVE AMERICA ACT’ BE TIED TO DHS FUNDING AMID AIRPORT CHAOS

As the country faces a Democrat-manufactured strain on airport operations, President Trump ordered the deployment of ICE officers to help stabilize airports, prompting immediate and predictable claims that the move is unsafe or unlawful. Those claims are patently false. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, Ice officers operate with full federal authority to question, detain, and arrest removable individuals in the United States. The Homeland Security Act grants DHS broad authority to allocate personnel across its components to secure transportation systems. There is no statute requiring that only TSA personnel perform functions such as identity verification, perimeter security, or line management. Under this broad authority, DHS retains the ability to reallocate federal personnel in a crisis, making clear that Democrats are raising a political objection, not a legal one. This authority has always existed under federal law.

And beyond the politics, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries escalated the rhetoric with outright fearmongering. Appearing on CNN, he warned that deploying ICE agents to airports could result in them “brutalizing or, in some instances, kill” travelers. That is not a legal argument grounded in statute or even reality. It is a political narrative used to block a crisis response.

What this moment exposes is an inconsistency in how Democrats treat federal enforcement authority. They accept it when it suits them and reject it as unlawful when it doesn’t. House Democrats have voted for bills that provide billions to fund ICE and DHS operations, and 75 House Democrats supported a resolution expressing gratitude for ICE’s role in protecting the homeland. Democratic leadership has repeatedly voted to keep DHS funded, including ICE, despite backlash from their own base. However, now the officers are too dangerous to assist with routine airport functions. That contradiction is impossible to ignore.

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Even within the administration, there has been discussion about how best to implement the deployment. Border Czar Tom Homan made clear that ICE agents aren’t trained to operate X-Ray machines but will be assigned to non-screening roles, such as securing exits or assisting with basic security functions to free up TSA officers for screening duties. At the same time, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy emphasized that ICE officers are trained federal law enforcement personnel capable of supporting airport security. That operational distinction is worth discussing but does not support the claim that the deployment is unlawful.

The more important question is what happens next. There is no clear path to resolution, and TSA staffing will not recover overnight. If Democrats continue to use funding as leverage, the strain on airport operations will persist, forcing a choice between allowing critical infrastructure to degrade or deploying the federal resources already available to stabilize it. This is the direct consequence of turning operational capacity into a political bargaining tool.

While headlines may continue to focus on airport delays, what is happening at airports is a real-time test of whether the federal government can function under pressure. If political actors withhold funding, manufacture operational strain, and then block lawful solutions to extract policy concessions, that playbook will not stop at the TSA. It will extend to border security, disaster response, law enforcement, and every other system where federal resources can be leveraged for political gain. The truth is that the law has not changed, the authority has always existed, and the surrounding outrage is manufactured.

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If you’re hauling freight on America’s highways, safety isn’t optional. It’s the price of admission.

That principle is at the heart of Dalilah’s Law, which the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed today.

Backed by President Trump during last month’s State of the Union, this legislation reinforces a fundamental principle: only properly trained and qualified professionals should be behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound truck. It strengthens safety standards, ensures drivers can understand and communicate in English, and closes loopholes that have allowed unqualified or improperly licensed individuals to slip through the cracks — making roads safer for everyone.

FAMILY PUSHES FOR ‘DALILAH’S LAW’ AFTER TRUMP HONORS GIRL CRITICALLY INJURED BY ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCK DRIVER

Dalilah’s Law is named for a young girl whose life was forever changed by a preventable crash involving an undocumented immigrant behind the wheel of a commercial truck.

Speeding through a construction zone, this reckless driver hit the car five-year-old Dalilah Coleman was traveling in, leaving her with permanent disabilities that will require lifelong care. It is a devastating example of what happens when safety standards are not upheld or enforced.

SOME STATES HAVE LET UNQUALIFIED FOREIGN DRIVERS ON THE ROAD AND AMERICANS PAY THE PRICE

In the years following COVID-19, a surge in freight demand brought an influx of opportunity seekers into our industry. While many answered the call responsibly, others chased quick profits without respecting the safety standards on which the industry depends. When enforcement slips, safety suffers. And that’s when tragedies like Dalilah’s happen. We saw it in Florida. We saw it in California. We saw it in Indiana.

Dalilah’s Law addresses these gaps head-on.

DUFFY EXPOSES 54% OF NORTH CAROLINA TRUCK LICENSES ISSUED ILLEGALLY TO ‘DANGEROUS DRIVERS’

It ensures consistent enforcement of English-language proficiency requirements during roadside inspections and makes clear that drivers who cannot meet those standards should be placed out of service. It modernizes the driver record notification system, so motor carriers are promptly alerted if a driver’s commercial driver’s license (CDL) has been revoked, suspended, or is otherwise invalid. And it requires the Department of Transportation to strengthen oversight of training providers, ensuring new drivers receive the instruction they need to operate safely.

Just as importantly, it reinforces accountability across the CDL system. States play a central role in issuing licenses, and consistent, rigorous enforcement is critical. By closing gaps and improving coordination, this legislation helps remove bad actors from the road while supporting the vast majority who are doing the job the right way.

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This is what it looks like when government and industry work together to fix a real problem. President Trump, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Rep. David Rouzer, and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee have answered the call to strengthen roadway safety.

At its core, trucking is about trust. Americans trust that the goods they rely on will arrive safely. They trust that the trucks they share the road with are operated by qualified professionals. And they trust that the system overseeing this industry is working as it should.

Dalilah’s story is a painful reminder of what’s at stake when we fall short. This legislation is our opportunity to make sure we don’t.

There’s no room for shortcuts when lives are on the line. Congress must pass Dalilah’s Law.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM CHRIS SPEAR

When I came to California in the Reagan days, it represented the heart of America — a Golden State where families could work hard, start businesses, and live out their very own American Dream. Today, California has earned a very different reputation: the land of scams.

During the pandemic, criminals siphoned $32 billion out of California’s unemployment system. That’s well above most states’ budgets, enough to fix every pothole from San Diego to Sacramento. And that’s just one program.

We’ve seen millions in SNAP funds diverted by criminal rings in recent years. Millions more have been stolen by AI “ghost students” enrolling in California community colleges and pocketing the cash. Most recently, we’ve seen billions in Medicaid funds go toward non-essential healthcare for illegal immigrants and hundreds of millions more down the drain for fraudulent hospice schemes.

Every time I pick up my phone, there’s fresh fraud in California — and all of this with Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom jetting off to so many European cities, you’d think he was a Eurovision popstar.

JD VANCE SPEARHEADS ‘WAR ON FRAUD,’ PROMISES TO ROOT OUT TAXPAYER MONEY ‘STOLEN’ BY ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

I have written to Newsom directly about each of these cases. In all but one instance, I’ve received no response — not even an acknowledgment of receipt. The lone exception was a dismissive answer regarding my letter on Medicaid fraud, in which the administration claimed the problem was an overblown non-issue because the state would simply reimburse the federal government for improper payments.

It is clear that federal and state dollars are not being competently accounted for in the middle of this fraud circus. Is this really the standard of accountability we want for our hard-earned taxpayer dollars? As a California taxpayer, I certainly do not.

That’s why I introduced the “No More SCAMS Act” to create a federal interagency task force dedicated to cracking down on waste, fraud, and abuse across government programs. For too long, our federal agencies have been trying to tackle fraud with no playbook, tripping over themselves while scammers run up the score. My bill puts one quarterback on the field with one game plan and a single mission: stop the fraud.

GOP SHERIFF LEADING CALIFORNIA POLL RIPS NEWSOM’S ‘LOVE AFFAIR’ WITH CRIMINALS

Despite what Sacramento Democrats or Newsom himself might have you believe, the movement to crack down on fraud isn’t some Republican gotcha tactic. It’s good government that puts Californians and Americans first.

These resources should be going to students, veterans, mothers and low-income families in need — not fraudsters and organized criminal rings while career politicians look the other way. Every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken away from Americans who actually need the help and from taxpayers who are stretched thin.

Sadly, fraud is running rampant and California is ground zero. Instead of having a governor focused on fixing the problem and making our state better, we have the biggest snake oil salesman of all.

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Everyone here in California has felt the reality of Newsom’s disastrous policies firsthand. Since he took office in 2019, prices have skyrocketed, crime has spiked, and hardworking Americans can’t afford to raise a family. The American Dream of homeownership has become a generational privilege instead of a goal families can realistically work toward.

Despite all of this, I still believe in our Golden State. It’s my home. It’s where my family is. And it hurts me to see so many of my friends and neighbors struggling because of Sacramento’s out-of-touch policies.

I’ve been battling this lunacy since my days in the State Assembly and continue that fight today as the representative for Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. I didn’t come this far to watch our state be run into the ground by scams, corruption and failed leadership.

It’s true, we’re in the fight of our lives for the soul of California. Working with President Donald Trump, I’m determined to take on that fight and help bring California into its Golden Age.

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