Airport executives in Detroit have sidestepped a video from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in which she blames Democrats for the government shutdown.
Detroit Airport has publicly pushed back against Noem’s video, which plays at some Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints, by putting up yellow signboards disavowing its partisan hate.
The Detroit boards highlight how airports are coming to terms with Noem adopting TSA screens for bitter partisan messaging.
The 37-second clip features Noem, who has earned the moniker “ICE Barbie” for her camera-ready immigration crackdowns, blames Democrats in Congress for the government shutdown, and claims TSA operations have been “impacted” with many officers working without pay.
But the Detroit Airport signboard reads, “ATTENTION: The views expressed in this TSA controlled video do not represent the views of the Wayne County Airport Authority. The Wayne County Airport Authority does not engage in partisan politics. Thank You.”
The airport posted a photo of the signboard to X, saying it had asked TSA to stop showing the video altogether.
“WCAA does not operate the checkpoint monitors, which are located in TSA-leased space. The TSA did not seek approval to play the message,” a statement said.
Detroit’s move came as more than half a dozen airports across the country reportedly refused to play the clip, which has been criticized for its partisan tone.
The Daily Beast has contacted the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for comment.
The flap followed a similar partisan controversy earlier this month, when the Department of Housing and Urban Development briefly featured a red banner on its official website blaming “the radical left” for the shutdown.
“The Radical Left are going to shut down the government and inflict massive pain on the American people unless they get their $1.5 trillion wish list of demands. The Trump administration wants to keep the government open for the American people,” the message said.
Critics pointed to potential violations of the 1939 Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in political activities.
Democrats have similarly slammed Noem’s TSA clip as potentially violating the Hatch Act.
Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington accused Noem of airing a “partisan video message” in airports “in which she erroneously blames ‘Democrats in Congress’ for the current government shutdown’s impact on airport ‘operations’ and for Transportation Security Administration employees ‘working without pay.’”
“This message is not just false; it appears to violate the prohibitions contained in the Hatch Act. As the independent agency responsible for enforcing the Hatch Act, I urge you to investigate this matter immediately,” Cantwell said in a letter to the Office of the Special Counsel on Wednesday.
