Checkpoints and Borders Policy Debate - House Passes Bill to Reduce TSA Budget by $422 Million

It's a start: (http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2012/06/10/news/doc4fd4115f76722268424553.txt?viewmode=fullstory)

HOMELAND-SECURITY BUDGET: Voting 234 for and 182 against, the House on June 7 approved a $46 billion Department of Homeland Security budget (HR 5855) for fiscal 2013 that will fund operations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Transportation Security Administration, Coast Guard and Secret Service as well as Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The department has 230,000 employees. The bill increases disaster relief and most frontline activities but cuts the transportation security budget by $422 million from 2012 levels. Additionally, it requires at least 34,000 beds for detaining illegal immigrants; increases cybersecurity funding; provides extra security funding to the nation’s 25 most at-risk cities and authorizes grants to help cities hire new firefighters and recall those who have been laid off. The bill awaits Senate action.
[emphasis added]

In the Texas delegation every Republican except one voted for this. Every Democrat voted against it.

Now the big questions: will it get past the Senate, and will Obama veto it? He's already proven himself to be an enemy of privacy and personal rights ("If they don't like it, they can take the bus"), and Napolitano, who pushed freeway speed cameras through in Arizona despite having minimal bipartisan support for it, seems to have his junk in a vise grip.

My prediction: The Senate will pass a completely different authorization bill, and the budget cut will "mysteriously" disappear in conference.

My prediction: The Senate will pass a completely different authorization bill, and the budget cut will "mysteriously" disappear in conference.

+1 Agree.

Please don't let anymore install the bodyscanner. This should have enough already. No more scanner!

Please don't let anymore install the bodyscanner. This should have enough already. No more scanner!

I believe there's still a backlog of MMW scanners on order, ready to be installed at the gravel-runway general aviation airport that just happens to get a ZK B1900 every week near you!

It's a start: (http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2012/06/10/news/doc4fd4115f76722268424553.txt?viewmode=fullstory)


[emphasis added]

In the Texas delegation every Republican except one voted for this. Every Democrat voted against it.

good news. Keep in mind that with real inflation rates hitting between 8% and 10%, the cut is much deeper than this number shows. Just to keep level in real terms with last years budget, the TSA would have had to have had a 10% increase. This is a significant cut.

Wrote an e-mail to my representative thanking him for voting for the bill. I don't think he's too pleased with the TSA at the moment, as one of the recent child-screening stories involved a constituent of his.

Good. Those fools are wasting money by being in the airports. How much $ are we taxpayers spending for a guy to push a cart with plastic bins in circles?

Please don't let anymore install the bodyscanner. This should have enough already. No more scanner!

Wasn't their forward looking goal a nation with over 1,000 body scanners deployed by TSA?

It's a start: (http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2012/06/10/news/doc4fd4115f76722268424553.txt?viewmode=fullstory)


[emphasis added]

In the Texas delegation every Republican except one voted for this. Every Democrat voted against it.

Which Texan voted against this?

Which Texan voted against this?

Burgess, Michael TX 26th

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/112-2012/h370

In the Texas delegation every Republican except one voted for this. Every Democrat voted against it.

You mean every Democrat in Texas ... 17 other Democrats in the USA voted in favor of it, including mine. But that said the Democrats do not look good on this issue from my perspective.

My Democrat voted against it. Just sent him an email saying that, for the first time in my life, I'll be voting for a Republican.

(Ok, second time maybe. It depends which race is first on the ballot: President or Congressman.)