DHS halts ‘Quiet Skies' program following Republican claims it was used against political opponents

Yahoo

5 days ago

A program designed to flag travelers for potential extra screening and monitoring at airports and on airplanes will be discontinued, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Thursday.
The program recently came under attack from Republicans after it was revealed that prior to her appointment to lead the US Intelligence Community, Tulsi Gabbard was temporarily placed on the 'Quiet Skies' list – a process that can occur because of a number of different factors, including travel patterns.
Being on the list does not mean an individual is suspected or accused of wrongdoing.
Quiet Skies has long been the source of negative publicity for TSA, according to a former US official. But officials have seen it as valuable because it allows the agency to order extra security checks for certain people based on specific intelligence.
'It is clear that the Quiet Skies program was used as a political rolodex of the Biden Administration — weaponized against its political foes and exploited to benefit their well-heeled friends,' Noem said in her statement announcing the program's end. 'I am calling for a Congressional investigation to unearth further corruption at the expense of the American people and the undermining of US national security.'
As CNN previously reported, Gabbard was quickly removed from the list after going public last year with claims she had been added to a 'secret terror watchlist' – saying she was placed on the list for criticizing then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
US officials told CNN that to have a nominee for a top position — much less the director of national intelligence — placed on a government watchlist of any kind was highly unusual, if not unprecedented.
It remains unclear why Gabbard was placed on the list and subsequently removed.
The Quiet Skies algorithm looks at travel patterns, foreign connections and other data in a variety of government holdings, and if triggered, leads to additional security screening at the airport by Air Marshals. But it is not associated with the FBI's terrorist watch list.
Security officials from multiple agencies previously told CNN that the program is known inside the government for having far laxer standards for inclusion.
The program was only one part of airport security and other screening lists still exist inside of the department.
In a press release Thursday, DHS said the program 'was used to target political opponents and benefit political allies.'
'TSA will continue performing important vetting functions tied to legitimate commercial aviation security threats to both ensure the safety of the American traveler and uphold its statutory obligations,' the department said.
CNN's Evan Perez contributed to this report.