In a variety of situations, U.S. air marshals are responsible for keeping airlines safe. But because of the ongoing crisis at the US-Mexico border, the Biden administration wants to send them there to assist the overburdened Border Patrol.
Due to a shortage of Border Patrol agents, Joe Biden has directed U.S. air marshals to the southern border, which will reduce their coverage of U.S. flights to one-eighth of normal. However, according to Air Marshal National Council President David Londo, dozens of air marshals have vowed to have promised to disobey the order in protest.
“The rank and file air marshals are going to refuse to deploy and risk termination. You’re almost going to have a mutiny of a federal agency, which is unheard of,” Londo said.
“Morale is so destroyed from this. I’ve never seen anything like this,” he added.
Londo’s allegation was rejected by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The TSA stated in a statement that it is “entirely inaccurate and does not reflect the critical and professional law enforcement role these officers perform.”
Last year, the Federal Air Marshal Service requested marshal volunteers to serve a 30-day assignment assisting border officers with the processing of immigrants at the southern border. The deployments became required by the Biden administration last month.
Londo informed the Federal Air Marshal Service Director Tirrell Stevenson, TSA Administrator David Pekoske, and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a letter saying the marshals had lost “confidence” in the authorities’ ability to lead, the letter was obtained by the Examiner.
“As it stands today, we believe that many FAMs will refuse to deploy, believing the order is reckless and leaving our country vulnerable to attack. On behalf of our membership, stop these dangerous and irresponsible deployments before our adversaries take advantage of the opportunity this policy has provided,” Londo wrote.
According to Fox News, Other outside law enforcement organizations are lending their support to the air marshals’ organization in their emerging conflict with the Biden administration. The National Association of Police Organizations released a statement endorsing the air marshals’ protest.
The association said that “The Federal Air Marshal Service is understaffed and covering the fewest number of flights since before September 11, 2001. We strongly question the decision by the Department of Homeland Security to divert much-needed aviation security to the southern border especially as we enter the busiest travel season of the year, particularly as a federal emergency has not been declared at the border.”
Londo asserted that the order deploying air marshals to the southern border leaves commercial flights unprotected, but the Department of Homeland Security pushed back against Londo’s claims.
In a statement to Fox News from the department:
“The suggestion that flights are being left unprotected is completely false, TSA takes its responsibility to secure the skies for the traveling public very seriously. We will continue to protect commercial flights though [sic] our multi-layered security processes, including through the Federal Air Marshal Service which supports this critical mission on the ground and onboard aircrafts.”
Sources: Dailywire, Washingtonexaminer, Americanmilitarynews
