TSA Authority. (OK I giggled when I typed that.)

[Norm357]

This morning, Sen Rand Paul was detained in Nashville by the TSA. Since the TSA has no law enforcement authority, how are they allowed to detain someone? Where I'm from, that's called kidnapping and the TSA child molestation agent would be arrested. (I hope)

[G35 Mass]

He always had the option of turning around and leaving the private property he was on, which those entrusted to its security were not permitting him to enter upon due to a security concern.

[retdetsgt]

The TSA agent won't be arrested, but that was a really horrible decision to screw with a US Senator. There is a law against hindering them on the way to Washington on the books and that was where he was headed. I think more than a few TSA personnel may regret that.

According to him, he tried to leave the cubicle and was ordered to remain. That sounds like detention to me.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics...-in-nashville/

[Norm357]

According to reports, Sen Paul was detained in a locked room. Does not sound like he had much chance to leave.

[G35 Mass]

The TSA agent won't be arrested, but that was a really horrible decision to screw with a US Senator. There is a law against hindering them on the way to Washington on the books and that was where he was headed. I think more than a few TSA personnel may regret that.

According to him, he tried to leave the cubicle and was ordered to remain. That sounds like detention to me.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics...-in-nashville/

There is no question that this was a no-win situation. The son of a highly controversial Presidential candidate causing problems with the needless government his father wants to reduce or eliminate?

I'd rather be the TSA agent jacked up for not letting him get on a plane than be the TSA agent who let him get on then chastised for allowing people of certain status to circumvent security measures AFTER being flagged as having a screening anomaly.

If there's some sort of law that forbids Congresspersons from being delayed while en-route to Washington, why was he going through TSA at all? Isn't that an inherent delay?

[Norm357]

According to reports, Sen Paul was detained in a locked room. Does not sound like he had much chance to leave.

[Norm357]

There is no question that this was a no-win situation. The son of a highly controversial Presidential candidate causing problems with the needless government his father wants to reduce or eliminate?

I'd rather be the TSA agent jacked up for not letting him get on a plane than be the TSA agent who let him get on then chastised for allowing people of certain status to circumvent security measures AFTER being flagged as having a screening anomaly.

If there's some sort of law that forbids Congresspersons from being delayed while en-route to Washington, why was he going through TSA at all? Isn't that an inherent delay?

He offered to go through the scanner again. The TSA monkey was tripping on his own authority.

Also.

“The Senators and Representatives…shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same….” according to Article I, Section 6.

[retdetsgt]

There is no question that this was a no-win situation. The son of a highly controversial Presidential candidate causing problems with the needless government his father wants to reduce or eliminate?

I'd rather be the TSA agent jacked up for not letting him get on a plane than be the TSA agent who let him get on then chastised for allowing people of certain status to circumvent security measures AFTER being flagged as having a screening anomaly.

If there's some sort of law that forbids Congresspersons from being delayed while en-route to Washington, why was he going through TSA at all? Isn't that an inherent delay?

The fact that he's anyone's son has no significance, being a US Senator does. And there is some sort of law, it's in the Constitution..... Article I, section 6

They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

All he asked for was to go through the machine again and they refused. I don't think that was an unreasonable request.

And I don't know about airports in other cities, but PDX is owned by the public.

[G35 Mass]

And I don't know about airports in other cities, but PDX is owned by the public.

So is the fire station. Do you have the right to sleep there?

[scott715us]

I'm a BNA LEO. The clear see-through cubicles he was moved to are not locked rooms. He went through the X-ray and some sort of "anomaly" popped up around his knee. He figured he could just lift up his pant leg and move on. Unfortunately when there's an anomaly they have to resolve it by a pat-down of the area. He refused the pat-down so he was denied entry into the sterile area to the gates. A LEO was called and escorted him back out of the secured area. That's when he started blowing up with phone calls to TSA, his office, and his daddy's office.

TSA does not detain anyone. They ask the person to move into another area where the pat-downs take place. Anytime someone refuses or there's an issue, they contact a LEO. There is a rotational position with the PD where there is always a LEO within 1 minute of the checkpoint.

Both are blowing it up way more than it was.

p.s. As far as the Constitutional requirement, the business he was traveling on was not senate/house-related.

[Norm357]

p.s. As far as the Constitutional requirement, the business he was traveling on was not senate/house-related.

He had a House vote at 1630hrs today that he missed because of this.

[scott715us]

He had a House vote at 1630hrs today that he missed because of this.

According to the video link provided by one of the others, he said he was going to speak at some large gathering.

[Norm357]

He missed that too. Yay TSA!

[scott715us]

He missed that too. Yay TSA!

His fault for missing it. A two-second pat-down of the knee area where the anomaly appeared would have resolved the issue. Although I don't agree with all of the practices in place by TSA, there's a time and a place to challenge their policies/procedures. He knows this more than anyone because of his involvement in politics. He chose to refuse screening so he got denied access to the gate. It didn't matter that he wanted to show them his knee or do it his way, the policy in place requires a pat-down of the specific area. If he doesn't like that policy, then he should attempt to get it changed in Washington.

[retdetsgt]

I don't care what their political view are, liberal or conservative, I don't think a member of Congress should have to tolerate that TSA BS. The speaker of the house has the privilege of flying in a military jet, I think any other member should at least be able to at least bypass TSA screening. Common sense has died from the government. They can come in and out of the Capitol building and bypass security, why not get on a plane?