Authorities blocked U.S. Sen. Rand Paul at the Nashville airport Monday after the Kentucky Republican refused a pat-down at a security checkpoint, his spokeswoman said.
Paul went through a scanner at the airport and set off an alarm, said his spokeswoman, Moira Bagley. He wanted to go through the body scan again instead of getting a pat-down, but officers of the Transportation Security Administration refused, Bagley said.
“When an irregularity is found during the TSA screening process, it must be resolved prior to allowing a passenger to proceed to the secure area of the airport,” TSA spokesman Greg Soule said. “Passengers who refuse to complete the screening process cannot be granted access to the secure area in order to ensure the safety of others traveling.”
A TSA official said Paul was “not detained at any point” and left the checkpoint willingly. The official was not authorized to speak for attribution.
Soule noted that Paul was eventually re-booked on another flight and re-screened without incident.
Paul, one of the most conservative members of the Senate, is an outspoken critic of what he characterizes as an overly obtrusive federal government threatening to strip citizens of various rights and civil liberties.
He is the son of libertarian Texas Rep. Ron Paul a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination.
(Source: Daily Caller / CNN)
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3 Responses
well he does look suspicious….middle age white male claiming to be a US Senator…definitely worthy of at least a patdown and detaining by the $8/hr so-called security at the TSA. the TSA cannot take chances with these types of potentially dangerous white men. we all know about tim mcveigh. the threat of domestic terrorism far outweighs the threat of so called “radical islam.” good work TSA.
Well, if he becomes president, at least we can count on him taking care of the TSA.
All TSA “agents” should be subject to a pat down every day before going home to see if they possess any goods stolen from passengers’ luggage.