The Senate Commerce Committee has released a 47-page report titled “Flight Risk,” which alleges that the Biden administration pressured federal transportation agencies to house migrants in U.S. airports, raising serious safety concerns for travelers. The report states that the White House directed the Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and other agencies to find airport facilities for migrant shelters or processing centers, despite warnings about compromising security and putting citizens at risk. Internal FAA emails reveal that staff were instructed to prioritize locating available airport spaces for migrant housing, with one official noting that the request could become “Fox News fodder.” The report highlights incidents at major airports like Boston Logan and Chicago O’Hare, where migrants were sheltered in terminals, leading to service calls and arrests. The committee accuses the administration of diverting federal resources and compromising aviation security by allowing unvetted individuals to move through the country’s air systems.
Among the airports allegedly involved are Boston Logan, Chicago O’Hare, and New York’s JFK, with the report detailing how some facilities were directly pressured to house migrants. Massport, which operates Boston Logan, warned federal counterparts that the move would create a host of unintended safety and security consequences, yet the terminal still hosted up to 352 migrants overnight, spending over $779,000 on security, cleaning, and transportation. At Chicago’s O’Hare, as many as 900 migrants were sheltered in a shuttle terminal, with police logging 329 service calls and 26 arrests, including thefts, disorderly conduct, and a death investigation. The report underscores the potential for chaos when unvetted individuals are mixed with travelers, citing a security breach at JFK involving an Ecuadorian immigrant who breached a secure area and was found with dangerous items.
The report also points to broader issues within the federal transportation system, alleging that agencies like the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) were directed to support migrant operations. For instance, the FMCSA was ordered to produce a “Know Your Rights” pamphlet for bus passengers and coordinate with states tracking bus companies transporting migrants. The FTA was encouraged to remind local transit agencies that federal grants could be used to move migrants. These actions, according to the committee, represent “a dangerous diversion” of federal transportation resources, with the administration accused of allowing unvetted individuals to move through the country’s air systems, thereby compromising aviation security. Sen. Ted Cruz, chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, condemned the report, stating that it exposes a “conspiracy” by the Biden Department of Transportation to house migrants at taxpayer expense and put American citizens at risk.