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TSA Detention Is No Joke

By Al Kamen
Monday, February 23, 2004; Page A19

A couple of years ago, when famed D.C. lawyer and now Florida senatorial candidate Larry Klayman was running Judicial Watch, he was a principal author of a book, "Fatal Neglect: The U.S. Government's Continuing Failure to Protect American Citizens from Terrorists."


The Transportation Security Agency, responding to such criticism, greatly tightened airport security, even posting signs warning people at airports not even to joke about bombs. The TSA Web site also warns against talking about terrorism or explosives or weapons when going through security. "Don't joke about having a bomb or firearm. The mere mention of such words as 'gun' or 'bomb' . . . can compel security personnel to detain and question you. They are trained to consider these comments as real threats."

The Web site of Klayman, a candidate in the GOP primary, touted that "as a national opinion leader on security issues, Larry Klayman believes that our officials in Washington have not gone far enough to protect Americans from terrorism."

But how far does he want them to go? For example, Klayman was just about to go through the metal detector at National last fall en route to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on United Flight 2899, when he announced that the package he was carrying (a little container for his cat) was not a bomb.

According to another waiting passenger nearby, Klayman told the screeners that the cat wasn't a terrorist and didn't have a bomb. With that, we're told, he was instantly taken out of line by the security people and put in handcuffs.

He was then apparently taken somewhere for questioning, where agents most likely didn't recognize him or realize that he was famous. He was eventually released, and he hopped a later flight.

"It wasn't a funny joke," Klayman said last week, rejecting our efforts to talk about the surgical removal of the agents' senses of humor. "I apologized for it. I support what the TSA is doing, and I should have been more sensitive. I was tired, and it was the end of the day."

Asked about the cuffs and the questioning, Klayman declined to go into detail, though he confirmed he had to take a later flight to Fort Lauderdale.

Well, beats Guantanamo.

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