WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday claimed that new federal spending cuts had already caused long lines and delays at major airports — but airports and the FAA reported nothing out of the ordinary.
“We are already seeing the effects,” Napolitano said, noting that some lines are “150 to 200 percent as long” as normal.
Napolitano sounded the alarm on the first full workday after $85 billion in “sequestration” federal spending cuts kicked in.
Meanwhile, House Republicans are pressing forward with a budget bill to fund the government for the rest of the year. It would keep the sequester in place but give President Obama more leeway on how to impose Pentagon cuts.
The House is expected to pass the bill by Thursday. The Democratic-run Senate would then take it up next week.