TSA pick, take three

last updated 8 January 2015

President Obama nominated FBI Deputy Director John Pistole as director of the Transportation Security Administration. He’s the third person tapped for the post, following Erroll Southers and Robert Harding, who withdrew when questions were raised about their backgrounds. Pistole was head of the FBI’s counterterrorism division before being promoted to deputy director, in 2004.

The post requires Senate confirmation, and Republicans may question Pistole about his support of collective bargaining for TSA employees. TSA staff can join a union but not negotiate through one. The American Federation of Government Employees represents 13,000 TSA workers.