The conservative Heritage Foundation is opposed to the TSA—but mainly because it has grown into an “just another entrenched bureaucracy.” “We need the TSA,” says James Carafano, who mentions a Heritage Foundation study from last year that suggested redefining the mission of the TSA from a provider of airport security to a maker of “aviation security policy and regulations.” The airports would assume responsibility for screening but “supervised by a federal security director.” What conservatives ultimately want is just a more efficient police state run by conservatives.
Since when does the federal government have the authority to provide security or make security regulations for private companies? Convenience store robberies are a much bigger problem than terrorists bringing bombs on airplanes. How about the federal government providing security at convenience stores or supervising security at convenience stores by a federal convenience store security director? Sounds ludicrous I know, but it ought to sound just as ludicrous for the federal government to handle security at airports. Why doesn’t it?
For a libertarian view of airline security, see here.
7:47 am on April 2, 2012
