The TSA sends random, unchecked passengers through its Pre-Check line
TSA sends random people through the Pre-Check line


The TSA's Pre-Check program allows travelers to experience pre-9/11 security — keep your shoes on, your toiletries in the bag, and your dignity intact — for a low fee of $85 a year plus fingerprinting. However, The Blaze reports that the TSA regularly undermines its own security rhetoric by directing random passengers who haven't been pre-checked into the Pre-Check lines to minimize wait times.
Though the TSA claims that only "eligible passengers" are being spontaneously allowed into the Pre-Check lines, less than a month ago a TSA spokesperson admitted that they were putting people through pre-check "on a random basis."
The TSA has come under fire since its creation in the aftermath of 9/11 for engaging more in "security theater" than actual security. Pre-Check itself has been criticized for privileging those who can afford to pay for it, and an op-ed from a former TSA agent in Politico earlier this year confirmed civil libertarians' fears of the agency's habits of corruption and abuse.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.