A group of Republican senators is pushing back against a federal "no-fly" list for unruly passengers, despite support by some in the airline industry.
Eight Republican senators expressed their concerns about a federal "no-fly" list for unruly passengers amid COVID-19 mask mandates on flights in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday.
"While we strongly condemn any violence towards airline workers, there is significant uncertainty around the efficacy of this mandate, as highlighted by the CEO of Southwest Airlines during a recent Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing," the senators said.
"Creating a federal "no-fly" list for unruly passengers who are skeptical of this mandate would seemingly equate them to terrorists who seek to actively take the lives of Americans and perpetrate attacks on the homeland."
Sens. Cynthia M. Lummis of Wyoming, Mike Lee of Utah, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Marco Rubio of Florida, Kevin Cramer or North Dakota, Ted Cruz of Texas, John Hoeven of North Dakota and Rick Scott of Florida are the eight Republicans who signed the letter.
They went on to say that the Transportation Security Administration "was created in the wake of 9/11 to protect Americans from future horrific attacks, not to regulate human behavior onboard flights."
Federal Aviation Administration data showed that there have been more than 6,400 unruly passenger incidents since the beginning of 2021, including almost 500 reported so far in 2022.
Nearly two-thirds of the reports this year have been related to violations of the federal mask mandate that is currently in place.
"The creation of this list by DOJ would result in a severe restriction on the ability of citizens to fully exercise their constitutional right to engage in interstate transportation," the senators said.
Delta Air Lines chief executive Ed Bastian wrote a letter to Garland on Feb. 3 asking for the creation of a federal "no-fly" list for those convicted of onboard incidents. He said in the letter that there are "nearly 1,900 people on Delta’s 'no-fly' list for refusing to comply with masking requirements and submitting more than 900 banned names to the TSA to pursue civil penalties."
Sara Nelson, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants, issued a statement in response to the group of Republican senators.
"We've been punched, kicked, spit on, and sexually assaulted," Nelson said. "We urge the FAA, TSA, and DOJ to come together to implement a plan with due process to keep dangerous flyers on the ground."
She said the letter opposing the "no-fly" list is "irresponsible and political brinkmanship that puts our economic security at risk right along with our lives."
"Homeland security is homeland security," Nelson said. "Our flights are under attack by a small number of people and it has to stop. … This is not about ‘masks,’ and the worst attacks have nothing to do with masks. You’re either for protecting crew and passengers from these attacks or you’re against."
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