The impending sequester did not prevent the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) from acting in late February to seal a $50-million deal to purchase new uniforms for its agents–uniforms that will be partly manufactured in Mexico.
Soon after this new investment in TSA uniforms, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned Americans that the lines are already lengthening at airports due to the sequester.
“We are already seeing the effect on the ports of entry, the big airports for example,” Napolitano told Politico on Monday. “Some of them had very long lines this weekend.”
“Look people, I don’t mean to scare, I mean to inform,” Napolitiano said.”If you’re traveling, get to the airport earlier than you otherwise would. There’s only so much we can do with personnel and please don’t yell at the customs officers, the TSA officers. They aren’t responsible for sequester.”
No. But they will be nattily attired while being so dramatically overburdened, thanks to the draconian cuts that are destroying our transportation infrastructure. And really, that’s all that matters.
On Feb. 27, the agency announced that on Feb. 22 it had awarded a one-year contract to VF Imagewear, Inc., which owns the Lee brand and Wrangler Hero, to provide the uniforms. “This contract will address the requirements of the TSA, Office of Security Operations, TSA Uniform Program,” the award states.
The TSA employs 50,000 security officers, inspectors, air marshals and managers. That means that the uniform contract will pay the equivalent of $1,000 per TSA employee over the course of the year.
This is not the first time VF Imagewear has been commissioned to make TSA uniforms. The company secured a $98 million contract in 2010 that expired on Feb. 17, 2013.
The latest contract will run until Feb. 17, 2014, with a one-year optional transitional period. By next year, the DHS hopes to have TSA and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) secure their uniforms with a single combined contract.
TSA’s new $50-million one-year uniform contract was announced just two days before the automatic, across-the-board spending cuts, known as the sequester, took effect. The cuts, according to CBO, amount to $44 billion in reduced spending in fiscal 2013.
In the run-up to a set of draconian cuts that will destroy any kind of economic growth, it is crucial that we spend spend spend spend right up until the time to cut. Otherwise, how can we justify the cuts, if the aren’t tied to last-minute gorging at the trough?
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has said the sequester will force furloughs at the TSA, and has warned of increased waiting times at airports.
The TSA provides uniforms to new employees, but requires its employees to buy their own replacements.
“We are already seeing the effect on the ports of entry, the big airports for example,” Napolitano told Politico on Monday. “Some of them had very long lines this weekend.”
“Look people, I don’t mean to scare, I mean to inform,” Napolitiano said.”If you’re traveling, get to the airport earlier than you otherwise would. There’s only so much we can do with personnel and please don’t yell at the customs officers, the TSA officers. They aren’t responsible for sequester.”
I think it was a Euro newspaper that actually called up JFK, LAX, and OHare and found that to not be the case. Again, they just lie.
They’re union thugs. Their union supported the little god-king, who proposed the sequester.
They’re responsible for it, all right.
Those had better be some damn fine uniforms. I’m thinking something like the Queen’s Guards at Buckingham Palace, with the bearskin hats.
AFGE on the sequester…
AFGE ‘political action talking points’ (you’re not supposed to view that on a ‘government computer, on government time’, btw!).
As per JD.
http://reason.com/24-7/2013/03/05/us-airports-report-no-sign-of-napolitano
So far, my favorite sequester joke has been this one:
How long until we get the leaked DHS memo requiring all TSA employees to take a 30 minute “safety break” every 45 minutes? Paid, of course.
*putt*
One thousand dollars? That’s more than a Marine Corps dress uniform with all the trimmings.
They better come with some right snappy jackboots.
Somebody’s going to be in trouble for contradicting what the little god-king’s minions said the impact would be.
For certain specific values of “contradict,” that is.
@leigh: the TSA uniform is just a shirt and pants, too, right? No wool coat or other expensive item that I’ve seen.
jumping the shark
White House Cancels Tours ‘Due to Sequestration’
The TSA provides uniforms to new employees, but requires its employees to buy their own replacements.
Since they unionized, the Government Gropers get $446 annually for a uniform allowance. Who’d have guessed that a short-sleeve dress shirt with a patch and some epaulets would be so spendy?
@SBP, I am not certain. There is an article on Drudge about it, but I’ve not read it.
Maybe they get a real gold badge now?
$1000.00 per year is one heck of a “uniform allowance.”
Geoff, I see from that article that they are responsible for buying their own footwear, as well. Not only that, the uniforms are to be manufactured in Mexico.
Didn’t see Squid. So it’s $446 for the 50,000 or $22,300,000 of the $50,000,000 leaving $27,700,000 for the first uniforms of new hires? Lots of new hires planned?
Figuring that the jacket is just a cop-style windbreaker, there’s no way that should cost more than about $200 at wholesale prices.
Someone in this administration could really use a financial accounting class. If that’s too hard, then a manufacturing accounting class.
Of course, they both use MATH, so that’s probably out of the question.
Obama refused to learn his ciphers because there’s no I in math.
It’s a really, really, really nice sweater.
Well, there’s small i in mathematics, signifying imaginary numbers. But Barky never uses small i’s.
Then again, imaginary numbers are the only kind he uses.
leigh,
Don’t tell me, lemme guess: the whole ensemble is designed by Hugo Boss?