Does the TSA Go too Far?

Has the federal government not yet overstepped its boundaries when it uses radiation to strip-search its citizens each time they fly and frisks them as they go to football games?

The Transportation Security Administration, which was created after Sept. 11, 2001, to provide nationalized security at American airports, has expanded its presence to train stations, bus terminals, concerts and sporting venues.

The terror threats in August of 2013, which resulted in the evacuation of American embassies and elevated domestic security, have drawn attention and criticism to these Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response teams, which operate outside of airport terminals.

These increased measures along with invasive pat-downs and full-body scanners demonstrate the TSA’s overextension beyond its intended purpose of preventing terrorism on airlines while respecting individual rights. Now performing warrantless searches in a variety of public places, the TSA has become another federal agency infringing on constitutional rights.

In 2010, John Pistole, the TSA administrator, announced enhanced pat-downs, which permitted TSA agents to touch travelers’ breasts and groins in search of prohibited items. When asked on Face the Nation if she would subject herself to the intrusive pat-downs, Hillary Clinton replied, “Not if I could avoid it. No, I mean, who would?”

After U.S. Sen. Rand Paul notably refused a pat-down, he described the controversy surrounding a 6-year-old Kentucky girl who was selected to undergo a random screening, which resulted in the TSA agent touching the child’s inner thighs and inside of her jeans. Paul stated, “Every time we travel, we are expected to surrender our Fourth Amendment rights, yet willingly giving up our rights does not make us any safer.”