NY lawmakers slam TSA proposal to reduce security screenings

Some New York lawmakers are among those criticizing a TSA proposal to allow thousands of passenger a day to board commercial flights at smaller and mid-sized American airports without TSA screening. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) says scrapping this kind of security would be a disaster waiting to happen. He sent a letter to the TSA administrator asking that current passenger screening be maintained, suggesting the idea risks national security in the post 9-11 world. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) agrees, and expects there will be congressional oversight on this. "I hope we can have hearings. I hope we can have a very significant debate about the risks we are running," said Gillibrand. Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus), chair of the House Homeland Security Transportation subcommittee, is also opposed to the idea, citing security risks, saing this isn’t the time to be pulling back on security. "Because the bad guys are constantly probing the weakness in our air systems, and their technology is