TSA Blocks Security Expert From Testifying To Congress

03-27-2012 • http://www.prisonplanet.com, Steve Watson

The TSA ensured that a leading security expert, who has been vocally critical of the agency’s screening methods, was barred from speaking before a Congressional hearing yesterday.

The hearing, before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, was held Monday in an effort to evaluate the agency’s performance and address concerns raised by lawmakers, experts in the field, and members of the public.

Bruce Schneier, an internationally renowned security technologist and author, was scheduled to testify regarding the TSA’s security screening initiatives, but was “formally uninvited” at the last minute following a complaint by the agency.

“On Friday, at the request of the TSA, I was removed from the witness list,” Schneier wrote on his blog Monday.

“The excuse was that I am involved in a lawsuit against the TSA, trying to get them to suspend their full-body scanner programme. But it’s pretty clear that the TSA is afraid of public testimony on the topic, and especially of being challenged in front of Congress. They want to control the story, and it’s easier for them to do that if I’m not sitting next to them pointing out all the holes in their position. Unfortunately, the committee went along with them.”