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Buttigieg Fails Yet Again…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is under fire yet again after the Federal Aviation Administration issued a rare and alarming full ground stop for all U.S. flights Wednesday morning. 

At 8 a.m. Eastern, there were more than 2,500 delayed flights within, into or out of the United States, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware, exceeding the number of all delayed flights on the previous day. More than 150 have been canceled. Those numbers are likely to grow.

More than 21,000 flights were scheduled to take off in the U.S. today, mostly domestic trips, and about 1,840 international flights expected to fly to the U.S., according to aviation data firm Cirium.

Biden addressed the FAA issue Wednesday before leaving the White House. He said he had just been briefed by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who told him they still had not identified what went wrong.

“I just spoke to Buttigieg. They don’t know what the cause is. But I was on the phone with him about 10 minutes,” Biden said. “I told him to report directly to me when they find out. Air traffic can still land safely, just not take off right now. We don’t know what the cause of it is.”

Since taking office in early 2021, Buttigieg has been mired in controversy and his lack of transportation experience has been repeatedly highlighted with a number of crises. During the supply chain crisis of 2021, when thousands of fully loaded shipping containers were sitting offshore, Buttigieg took off for months of paternity leave without appointing a deputy. During negotiations that nearly resulted in a devastating and economically disruptive nation wide rail strike, Buttigieg was on vacation in Portugal. 

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Buttigieg Did Not Deliver On His Promise…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is being ripped for his response to the airline meltdown that left thousands of people stranded on Christmas after he assured Americans just months ago that ongoing air travel issues would improve before the holidays.

Buttigieg, told late-night comedian James Corden three months ago that airline travel would improve by the holiday season, a claim that does not appear to have been kept amid massive flight cancellations during the holiday.

“I think it’s gonna get better by the holidays,” the transportation secretary said at the time. “We’re really pressing the airlines to deliver better service. So many people have been delayed, been canceled, it happened to me several times this summer. And the fact is they need to be ready to service the tickets that they’re selling.”

Pete Buttigieg said that the government created a website to hold the airlines accountable, adding that most agreed to refund customers in the event of a flight cancellation as well as provide hotels and meal vouchers.

“If you’ve ever been mistreated by an airline, if they haven’t given you the refund they owe you, if they haven’t lived up to their customer service obligations, we will have your back,” he said. “We went from zero of the top 10 airlines committing that they’re going to provide a meal or hotel, for example, to eight out of 10 doing it. So we’re pushing them.”

“When they actually fail to live up to the rules, there’s serious enforcement behind that and we want to know if that’s happened to you,” he concluded.

Few to none of Buttigieg’s promises materialized by the Christmas travel season, with Southwest Airlines being the biggest culprit stranding thousands of Americans. In September, for instance, the anti-monopoly think tank American Economic Liberties Project (AELP) noted that the department had yet to issue a single fine against the more politically powerful airlines.

“The Department of Transportation has announced a rule on refunds that won’t take effect for at least 2-3 years, sent the airline CEOs a letter, and promised to unveil an information dashboard,” wrote the AELP. “It has yet to fine any U.S. airline a single dollar for unpaid refunds, flight cancellations, or systematic violations of consumer protection law, and has issued fewer enforcement orders in 2021 than in any single year of the Trump and Obama administrations.”

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Pete Buttigieg Under Fire From Democrats…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is under fire from fellow Democrats for flight delays and cancellations that have paralyzed the nation’s airports, wrecked holiday travel plans and caused Americans undue financial stress.

Progressive lawmakers, in particular, say Mr. Buttigieg needs to do more to rein in airline companies that have taken billions in public subsidies since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s time for the Transportation Department to impose massive fines on poor-performing airlines,” said Sen. Bernard Sanders, a self-described socialist from Vermont.

In an email to supporters, Mr. Sanders called on the White House and Mr. Buttigieg to require airlines to refund passengers for flights delayed more than an hour. For flights delayed longer than that, Mr. Sanders said the Department of Transportation should fine airlines $55,000 per passenger.

“Thousands of flight disruptions have left passengers and crew members stranded at crowded airports from one end of the country to the other forcing them to miss weddings, funerals, and business meetings and ruining family vacations that have been planned for months in advance,” said Mr. Sanders.

Ahead of the Fourth of July, more than 1,700 flights were canceled on Sunday alone, while 23,900 were delayed, according to FlightAware. Airline giants like United and Delta said the problem arose mainly because of an inability to properly staff flights.

Mr. Buttigieg responded to the melee by taking to social media on Sunday to urge passengers to be smart and consider accepting airline miles, rather than cash, for delayed or canceled flights.

“Sometimes an airline will offer you points or miles as compensation, but you are entitled to a cash refund when your flight is canceled,” he tweeted. “When deciding whether to accept miles, it’s helpful to know their value, which varies, but often is estimated at 1 to 1.5 cents per mile.”

Fellow Democrats say that Mr. Buttigieg holds at least some responsibility for the problem and should be doing more than just giving travel tips.

“The Transportation Department’s incremental response so far has been lacking the urgency, imagination, and boldness to meet the moment and needs of the American people,” Rep. Ro Khanna, California Democrat, wrote in a letter to Mr. Buttigieg ahead of the holiday weekend.

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Flight Attendants’ Union Fights To Keep Masks…

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(FreedomWire.org) – The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), the nation’s largest flight attendants’ union, says it expects the Biden administration will continue to extend its mask mandate for air travel beyond the current March 18 deadline.

The association, representing 50,000 workers, shared the news in a statement with Bloomberg.

“We have every expectation that the mask mandate will be extended for the near term,” the AFA said in a statement to Bloomberg.

“The conditions in aviation are the same. Our youngest passengers do not yet have access to the vaccine,” the statement added.

“It’s unclear when a decision about the federal mask requirement will be announced. The prior extensions were announced a few weeks ahead of the expiration date. The current deadline of March 18 falls during spring break for many schools and universities across the U.S., and a change in policy then could cause confusion or disruption during the historically busy travel period,” the Bloomberg report observed.

On Tuesday, a TSA spokeswoman noted there has not yet been an announcement to further extend the mask mandate.

“If there is a change to halt or extend the mask requirement, we will make an announcement,” she said in an email, according to The New York Times. “As of now, nothing new to share.”

Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit last week against the Biden administration regarding its mask mandate for airports and airlines, claiming it’s time to “strike down” the requirements. The Daily Wire previously reported:

Paxton filed the lawsuit alongside the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) on behalf of Republican Rep. Beth Van Duyne. The case was filed against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Director Rochelle Walensky, Chief of Staff Sherri Berger, and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra.

“Biden’s repeated disregard of the individual liberties of Texans is not only disrespectful to the U.S. Constitution, it is also troublesome that any president thinks they can act above the law while hardworking Americans standby,” Paxton said in a statement.

“President Biden cannot continue governing through executive edicts. Now is the time to strike down his administration’s air-travel mask mandate. I’m proud to stand alongside my friend Congresswoman Van Duyne and her counsel at TPPF to protect Texans’ liberty and the rule of law,” he added.

In December, Dr. Anthony Fauci was asked whether he believed there would be a point when Americans do not need to wear masks on airplanes.

“I don’t think so,” he replied at the time.

The interview followed a December report by two airline CEOs pushing back on mask requirements.

“I think the case is very strong that masks don’t add much, if anything, in the air cabin environment. It is very safe and very high quality compared to any other indoor setting,” then-Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly said, according to a CNN report.

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