TSA pat-down bill fails in the Senate

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Upon adjournment in the Texas Senate Wednesday night, a few straggling supporters of the so-called anti-groping bill pointed their frustration at Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst from the gallery, shouting “shame on you” and “coward” as members filed out of the chamber.

“Dewhurst, good job,” one man shouted. “My wife and children are free to get molested by the TSA.”

Guards scooted the protesters out the door, as HB 1937 sponsor, Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, accepted defeat. Shortly before adjournment, he announced he indeed did not have enough votes to bring the measure to the floor before the night's crucial deadline for House bills.

The measure would have made it a misdemeanor for TSA agents to touch certain body parts during airport security. While Dewhurst's office made it clear he “is concerned about the invasiveness of airport security screening procedures and supports the rights of law-abiding passengers,” Patrick challenged the leader of the Senate, accusing Dewhurst of playing “dirty politics.”

“It's pretty difficult to pass a bill when the lieutenant governor is working against the bill and doesn't share that with you,” said Patrick on Wednesday. “I had 30 votes yesterday starting at 10 o'clock in the morning, and he dragged to vote until almost 10 p.m. He was using the day to work against the bill.”

Political pressure from both state and federal officials forced Patrick to withdraw the bill late Tuesday, as he realized he no longer had the votes to bring it up for debate.

“This is a moment where Texas had to stand up,” Patrick said. “We had to say to the federal government 'no.' They came to me yesterday. They told me they threatened to shut down all of our airports, that we would be putting our nation at risk. It's nonsense.”

The U.S. Department of Justice delivered a letter to lawmakers this week detailing why such a move would jeopardize national security, possibly forcing TSA to shut down airports.

"Lt. Gov. Dewhurst agreed to move forward with a vote on House Bill 1937, and it was introduced yesterday,” said Dewhurst's communications director, Mike Walz. “During the course of debate, several senators withdrew their support for the bill, and it was pulled down by the sponsor, Sen. Dan Patrick, after it became clear that the bill lacked the requisite votes to pass.”

Several members said, if the bill ended up coming up for debate, they would use the remainder of the time before the midnight deadline to filibuster.

“I personally think we should leave it to the experts, which would be our national security advisers - homeland security, the TSA officials,” said Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston. “They know what the current security concerns are. They know when things are hot. I would hate for 181 legislators to think that they can override the concerns of the TSA officials.”

Throughout the day, those gallery protesters swarmed the halls outside the chamber in much larger numbers. Led by activist and radio host Alex Jones, their signs read messages like, “Keep your hands outta my pants!”

“They can have a federal national security force molesting children,” Jones bellowed from the entrance to the Senate, as his followers began chanting “treason, treason.” “Why do we even have states? They say the feds can do whatever they want. Why do we have states?”

It was unclear if the bill would find another avenue in the form of an amendment or another rule suspension, and Patrick – the legislature's Tea Party leader – left no indication of a revival of the pat-down bill.

“We should not cower to the federal government,” said Patrick. “This is what not only the United States is all about, but this is what Texas is all about. We stand and fight.”