Even more TSA comforting news
Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:42 am
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2009/ ... ns-work-ny
-airport
TSA Clears Illegal Immigrants To Work At NY Airport
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Last Updated: Fri, 12/18/2009 - 3:52pm
In the latest of many shameful lapses, the federal agency in charge of
securing the nation's transportation system approved background checks
for a dozen illegal immigrants working in sensitive areas of a busy
U.S. airport.
The illegal aliens, from Central America and Mexico, worked in
operational areas of Stewart International Airport, a 2,400-acre
facility located about 60 miles north of New York City. Stewart is a
major passenger airport for the state's mid-Hudson region that also
handles large quantities of cargo and serves as a military field.
The illegal aliens all had security badges approved by the
Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency created after
the 2001 terrorist attacks mainly to protect airlines. The TSA's
national background check failed to detect the fake Social Security
numbers and other bogus documents provided by the illegal immigrants
to obtain clearance.
So the embattled 43,000-member Homeland Security agency, which has
received hundreds of millions of dollars from Congress to fulfill its
mission, granted the undocumented aliens "trusted agent" security
badges. This allowed them to work at an airport warehouse business and
access key operational areas. An alert airport employee noticed the
suspicious documents and reported the illegal aliens.
This sort of negligence is par for the course for the TSA, which has
come under fire in recent years for leaving airplanes extremely
vulnerable to terrorist attacks. Just last month the Department of
Homeland Security Inspector General revealed that the TSA is failing
to ensure the security of tens of thousands of cargo packages
transported daily in the bellies of passenger planes, leaving aircraft
at risk of a terrorist attack.
That probe also found that workers who handle the cargo had not
received the required background checks or training, further adding to
the security crisis. Previous Inspector General probes have over the
years revealed similar problems in the TSA's dismal air cargo security
system and exposed dozens of security failures in other crucial areas
nationwide.
-airport
TSA Clears Illegal Immigrants To Work At NY Airport
View Discussion
Last Updated: Fri, 12/18/2009 - 3:52pm
In the latest of many shameful lapses, the federal agency in charge of
securing the nation's transportation system approved background checks
for a dozen illegal immigrants working in sensitive areas of a busy
U.S. airport.
The illegal aliens, from Central America and Mexico, worked in
operational areas of Stewart International Airport, a 2,400-acre
facility located about 60 miles north of New York City. Stewart is a
major passenger airport for the state's mid-Hudson region that also
handles large quantities of cargo and serves as a military field.
The illegal aliens all had security badges approved by the
Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency created after
the 2001 terrorist attacks mainly to protect airlines. The TSA's
national background check failed to detect the fake Social Security
numbers and other bogus documents provided by the illegal immigrants
to obtain clearance.
So the embattled 43,000-member Homeland Security agency, which has
received hundreds of millions of dollars from Congress to fulfill its
mission, granted the undocumented aliens "trusted agent" security
badges. This allowed them to work at an airport warehouse business and
access key operational areas. An alert airport employee noticed the
suspicious documents and reported the illegal aliens.
This sort of negligence is par for the course for the TSA, which has
come under fire in recent years for leaving airplanes extremely
vulnerable to terrorist attacks. Just last month the Department of
Homeland Security Inspector General revealed that the TSA is failing
to ensure the security of tens of thousands of cargo packages
transported daily in the bellies of passenger planes, leaving aircraft
at risk of a terrorist attack.
That probe also found that workers who handle the cargo had not
received the required background checks or training, further adding to
the security crisis. Previous Inspector General probes have over the
years revealed similar problems in the TSA's dismal air cargo security
system and exposed dozens of security failures in other crucial areas
nationwide.