Congress hijacked your 9/11 security fee and left you stuck at the gate

Published September 11, 2026 9:00am ET



Today, we commemorate the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, and reflect on the worst day in modern American history. In the aftermath of that tragedy, we experienced something that is rare to find today: bipartisanship on Capitol Hill. Barely two months after 9/11, Congress created the Transportation Security Administration, building on a bipartisan consensus that airport security was too important to leave to chance.

Fast forward to the spring of this year, and the contrast could not be starker — with our domestic aviation security paying the price. For more than two months, travelers waited in multi-hour lines at TSA Checkpoints around the country, missing flights, family events, and business meetings. Not because of a threat. Not because of weather. Because of partisan politics.

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