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Several major global air travel hubs across the America, among them Phoenix Sky Harbor, Las Vegas's Harry Reid Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International, and Charlotte Douglas Airport in NC, have chosen to block a video from Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem that faults Democrats for the ongoing government closure from playing at their screening locations.

Legal Concerns Raised by Aviation Authorities

Airport officials in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Seattle, Washington, Portland, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Westchester County have refused to display the video content at screening areas, stating that the overtly political messaging could contravene state and federal law, such as the Hatch Act of 1939, which bars government workers from participating in partisan actions.

“Democratic legislators decline to support funding for the U.S. government, and as a result, many of our operations are impacted, and most of our TSA employees are unpaid,” Noem stated in the video.

The Port of Portland Reaction

The Port of Portland noted that it “would not agree to airing the video in its current form, as we maintain the Hatch Act clearly prohibits utilization of government resources for partisan messaging.” The port further stated that Oregon law bars public employees from promoting or opposing any political party and that agreeing to broadcast this content would break Oregon law.

Harry Reid International Position

The Harry Reid airport also declined to display the TSA video on comparable reasons, stating in a release that “its content contained political messaging that did not align with the impartial, informational purpose of the PSAs usually shown at checkpoint screens” and also cited the federal act.

Explaining the Hatch Act

The Hatch Act is a U.S. law that forbids political activities by federal employees to guarantee that government programs stay impartial.

Additional Authority Rejections

• Phoenix Sky Harbor international airport explained that it “declined to post the video” to stay “in line with airport guidelines,” which does not allow political content.
• The Port of Seattle, which manages Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, also declined, pointing to “the political nature of the content.”
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport said that state municipal law and the airport's rules for digital content “do not allow the referenced video.” The airport also added that the TSA does not own any monitors at its checkpoints and that its few display monitors are designated for wayfinding, flight updates, and paid advertisements.

Westchester County Objection

Westchester County, in a statement, described the PSA “unacceptable, improper, and inconsistent with the standards we expect from our nation’s top public officials.”

“The PSA makes political the effects of a government closure on TSA operations,” the county leader said, adding that the tone was “unnecessarily alarmist” and “erodes public trust.”

DHS Reply

A DHS assistant secretary, an agency representative, repeated the Secretary's wording to attribute fault to “political gamesmanship” in a statement, adding that “Democrats will shortly recognize the importance of opening the federal government.”

Bipartisan Appeals for Solution

The Seattle authority said that it continued to “encourage cooperative actions to resolve the federal closure” and was working to find ways to support federal employees working without pay during the closure.