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Former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson told viewers on national television that what keeps him up at night is an “emerging security crisis” tied directly to the chaos in Washington — and he did not mince words about the harm the partial DHS shutdown was doing to the front-line people who keep American travelers safe. Johnson, who served in the Obama administration, warned that unpaid, overworked TSA officers and other essential personnel were being driven to the breaking point by political theater in the capital.
Make no mistake: this crisis did not spring up overnight. The partial government shutdown that stretched through the winter was born of a bitter fight over border security funding, and it became the longest shutdown in modern history as politicians dug in instead of protecting the country. That political standoff over money for the border wall left critical parts of Homeland Security limping along without normal funding.
While elites in Washington bickered, the consequences showed up at our airports — hundreds of TSA agents called out amid the shutdown, producing long lines, closed checkpoints, and real disruptions to travel and safety. Major outlets documented widespread “callouts” and staffing shortages that forced airports to scramble and, in some cases, close lanes or terminals as essential screeners simply could not afford to work without pay. The sickouts were not abstract numbers; they were hardworking Americans pushed to the edge while lawmakers thumbed their noses at duty.
When the shutdown dragged on, agencies were left to make impossible personnel decisions — and even federal guidance acknowledged that managers should consider workers’ individual hardships instead of punishing people who missed shifts because they couldn’t keep food on the table. The reality is that a stretched, demoralized workforce is a less secure workforce, and Washington’s inability to govern punished the very men and women who stand between the homeland and danger. That is not a policy debate; it is a moral failure.
Conservative Americans should hear Johnson’s warning and act — not by joining the Washington chorus of excuses, but by demanding Congress fund Homeland Security properly and stop using our security personnel as bargaining chips. The shutdown eventually ended after 35 grueling days, but the lesson remains: partisan posturing at the expense of national security cannot be tolerated, and accountability must follow. We must back the people who protect us and insist on policies that secure the border and restore confidence in our institutions.
This is about more than politics; it is about the safety of ordinary Americans who expect airports, ports, and borders to be secure. Patriots should stand with TSA screeners, border agents, and every public servant doing an essential job while also demanding sane, enforceable border policy and a Congress that puts country over campaign talking points. If Washington refuses, voters must remember at the ballot box who put politics ahead of protection.
