Rep. Lauren Boebert explodes over airports not playing anti-Democrat videos. Only 1 problem

With the government shutdown likely entering its third week and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) refusing to call lawmakers to Washington to fix the problem, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) is bravely taking a stand against…airports.

Specifically, Denver International Airport, which, along with about 20 of the country’s largest airports, refuses to play a propaganda video at security checkpoints featuring Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

The video in question shows Noem blaming Democrats for the shutdown and, by extension, any travel issues that may arise. (As a result of the shutdown, air traffic controllers and TSA agents are being asked to work without pay.)

“TSA’s top priority is to ensure you have the most pleasant and efficient airport experience possible while keeping you safe,” Noem says in the video. “However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government, and because of this, many of our operations are affected and most of our TSA employees work without pay.”

Boebert called the DIA’s denial “completely unacceptable” in a statement on social media Wednesday.

“This is completely unacceptable. I will contact the Department of Transportation to demand action on airports that refuse to show Secretary Noem’s video at TSA checkpoints,” he wrote.

“It’s a fact that the Democratic shutdown is causing travel chaos,” he continued, grossly misunderstanding what a “fact” is. “The American people deserve transparency, efficiency and an end to this shutdown, now.”

Boebert’s anger might be a little misplaced, even by her standards. A spokesperson for Denver International Airport told News themezone that the TSA did not even ask to play the video “as we do not have monitors capable of playing video at our checkpoints.”

Meanwhile, the nearby Colorado Springs airport told Denver’s 9News that Noem’s video was simply too partisan to air.

“As a publicly operated facility, the airport adheres to policies that prohibit the display of materials that could be construed as political or partisan in nature,” the airport said in a statement. “In accordance with our Advertising Policy, content of this nature is not eligible for display within airport premises.”

Tom Williams via Getty Images

Noem’s video violates the Hatch Act, experts say. The 1939 law prohibits executive branch employees, including Cabinet secretaries, from using government resources for partisan political activities.

The video “completely contradicts the Hatch Act,” John Berry, an attorney with 26 years of experience in Hatch Act cases, told CNN.

“[Noem] “We filmed it, most likely, using government resources,” Berry explained. “Even though it’s playing at the airport, which is like a separate entity, it’s definitely a political activity.”

Spokespeople for other airports who refused to play the video referred to its political nature when explaining their decision.

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport told KIRO it will not air the video “due to the political nature of the content.”

The same goes for Las Vegas’ Harry Reid Airport, where a spokesperson told 8NewsNow the video “did not align with the neutral and informational nature of public service announcements typically displayed at security checkpoints.”

According to a tally by Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, all but three of the country’s 25 busiest airports have similarly refused to play the video.

“The overwhelming refusal of the nation’s airports to air this partisan and illegal video is a good sign that public officials do their jobs with honor and uphold basic democratic norms,” ​​the group’s co-chair Robert Weissman said in an emailed statement.

“The Trump administration is trying to ram its authoritarian agenda down the throats of the American people. Every action that rejects their illegal demands, every insistence on upholding the rule of law, every assertion of common sense, decency and justice builds on the next and works to protect and strengthen our democracy in this.”