The U.S. government has really sunk to new lows if it is telling air marshals -- who can't be expected to know these sorts of details -- that it pays for their seats, when it seems pretty clear that the government does not pay. (I'd still like some airline employee to confirm this, but I'm pretty confident that I'm correct.)

This is even worse than the time an air marshal told me, when I asked him directly how he had snagged my previously reserved seat, that he "worked for the airline." On the other hand, when I asked him to swap seats with me, he did!!!

Bruce