I don't think TSA requesting less money is implausible. Given the almost totally negative publicity TSA has been getting, and increased hostility to TSA starting to develop in Congress, TSA might've been facing a much larger budget cut. If TSA gets out ahead of the story and requests a small cut in its budget, and says "look, we're making cuts, we're being responsible", it might save TSA from even deeper cuts --- whether or not those deeper cuts would be appropriate.