00:00Are you on a TSA watch list? You might be, and you'd have no idea.
00:05Last week, the Department of Homeland Security revealed that under Biden TSA chief David Pekoski,
00:1119 Americans were put on TSA watch lists, and more than half were put on no-fly lists for resisting mask mandates.
00:19That would be a wild reason to be barred from flying at any point,
00:23considering that these no-fly lists are usually reserved for those with suspected terrorist ties.
00:27But the push to go after people for not wearing masks was part of Operation Freedom to Breathe,
00:34which was launched in September of 2021.
00:37That was six months after the CDC relaxed its rules on indoor masking.
00:42Being banned from boarding any domestic flight can be a life-altering consequence.
00:46It should only be meted out in the most extreme cases.
00:50The misuse of no-fly lists under the Biden administration was outrageous,
00:53but the fact is, TSA watch lists and surveillance programs are ripe for abuse.
01:00The process by which Americans are put on watch lists is completely hidden from the public.
01:06Americans can appeal their inclusion on a watch list,
01:08but since they're not notified when they're added, they have to figure it out themselves,
01:13usually by getting repeatedly yanked at airport lines for additional screening.
01:17In 2023, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee released a report
01:23finding that travelers may be screened for at least 22 different reasons,
01:28and that these processes may violate civil liberties.
01:31The committee also called for more transparency into watch listing and screening practices,
01:36saying that the secretive nature of the government's decision-making
01:38prevented oversight from both civilians and Congress.
01:42Aside from watch lists, the TSA has targeted countless Americans
01:46for extra scrutiny beyond security lines, under the most ridiculous pretenses.
01:52Quiet Skies, a surveillance program that ran for 15 years before it was nixed in June of 2025,
01:58profiled travelers for reasons ranging from bad body odor to loitering near the security line.
02:05If you made the Quiet Skies list, a TSA air marshal could end up on your next flight
02:10or following you around the airport.
02:11The Biden administration was able to target Americans so easily
02:15because there is so little accountability and so few guardrails
02:19when it comes to how the TSA monitors travelers.
02:22If something isn't done, the political weaponization of the TSA will happen again.
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