After Brussels, officials looking to tighten airport, train security
Plan would add officers and training
WASHINGTON Travelers would see tightened airport and train station security, including additional armed officers and better training for law enforcement, under a proposal endorsed by the secretary of Homeland Security on Tuesday as a result of the Brussels attacks.
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., outlined the bid to nearly double the number of armed Transportation Security Administration teams that patrol airports, train stations and other transportation hubs.
Other steps would bolster security in unsecured parts of airports such as the check-in and baggage-claim areas and provide more grant funding to train law-enforcement officers to combat shooters. The proposals are part of Federal Aviation Administration legislation the Senate is debating this week.
“By clamping down against terror threats now, we can avoid the kind of tragedy and devastation that happened overseas,” Schumer told reporters at a news conference.
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said he called for a more visible presence of armed teams on May 22, the day of the Brussels attacks, and deployed more air marshals on flights.
“We know of no specific credible intel of a plot like the Brussels attack here in the homeland,” Johnson said. “However, we remain vigilant, concerned about potential acts of self-radicalized violence by the so-called lone actors here in this country at public places and at public events.”
Bombings at the Brussels Airport and a downtown subway station killed 32 people and injured at least 270. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Security officials warn it’s difficult to protect train stations and airports outside secure areas be- cause they are open and easily accessible. Creating checkpoints at airport and train station doors would be costly and difficult, and terrorists could still attack wherever crowds gathered.
The Transportation Security Administration, part of Johnson’s department, tightened its screening after federal watchdogs found last year that officers had trouble detecting weapons during tests. Travelers complained loudly about longer security lines that resulted at airports nationwide.
Johnson said screening delays are partly the result of the growth in daily travelers from 1.8 million to 2.2 million. He also said he is trying to halt reductions in TSA officers as part of annual spending bills this year.
“We want to begin to build back that workforce,” Johnson said. “Wait times is something that I’m acutely aware of, but I believe we are addressing it.”
For example, TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger shifted canine teams between airports because the bomb-sniffing dogs can help screen passengers to move them through lines faster. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said the teams have cut waits in half at the Minneapolis airport, where they had stretched to an hour and a half at the busiest times.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said that questions might arise about the cost of the legislation but that tightening security measures is important. “What are our values?” Manchin asked. “What are our priorities?”