Nice to meet you!

I poisoned your cashews :)

Based on the route and the description, Senator Cornyn?

I've seen senators travel much lighter than that. Maybe a staffer or two and maybe there was a security guy in there too, but it wasn't a show of force like the one you describe.

That they are that cagey on a plane tells you all you need to know about how secure an airport is.

The uber security for elected officials has always puzzled me in a big picture kind of way. Kings care about getting whacked because that is the end of their reign. Elected officials? They get replaced every couple of years. We have a whole line of wanna-be's to fill the chair that will be the same as the last guy. Whacking one just brings another head of the hydra- where's the impact there? The more we focus on elected officials security, they more they seem to be royalty. I'm not saying put bulls-eyes on them, but when you shut down whole cities, it is getting a little ridiculous.

Man, the Uber car service has kind of ruined the word 'uber'.

Jeff?

Joke's on you! I'm allergic so didn't eat them.

Obviously it was SMI, J. Although the entourage was a little thin for him.

I don't think so. He would need more than 6 bodyguards to fly his own airline.

Funny you should say that. I asked the FA at the door the reason for delayed boarding, extra security, etc. She smiled at me and wouldn't answer.

Probably not a Senator. Generally, Senators travel with little to no security (unless there's some specific reason why they need it -- e.g., a threat or another position they hold/held), so 6 people would be serious overkill. Governors definitely travel with a security detail, but even then, 6 people seems like a lot.

Generally speaking, it's heads of government that have the most security (e.g., President, VP, Governors). Senators and Representatives are replaceable, and there would not be a serious impact on the functioning of the government if one were taken out (symbolic impact, yes; operational impact, no). I always figured the reason for having a security detail for Governors was that it would have a more serious impact on the actual short-term operation of the state's government.

Nope, VIP was younger and thinner.

Looking at it from a different angle, could the guy be a federal witness in a mafia case, a defecting Russian oil tycoon, or the next guy groomed to take over Venezuela?

Not if he used makeup to disguise himself :p

Pillows?

I like the federal witness idea. Especially without the snakes.

I flew on a MEX-IAD flight with SEN John McCain a few years ago. Just him and two staffers. If he had a security detail, they were invisible.