Senator Urges TSA to Reinstate Shoes-Off Security Screening
What are travelers willing to trade for speed at airport checkpoints? Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., is pressing that question as she demands the Transportation Security Administration bring back the shoes off requirement for passengers. The focus on shoes off has become a flashpoint in a larger debate over technology, safety and public confidence.
Duckworth sent a letter to Acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill sharply criticizing the change. “Secretary Noem’s decision to implement a shoes on policy on July 8, 2025, likely without meaningful consultation with TSA, was a reckless act,” Duckworth wrote. She added pointedly, “Allowing a potentially catastrophic security deficiency to remain in place for seven months and counting betrays TSA’s mission.” “At a minimum, TSA’s failure to swiftly implement corrective action warrants the immediate withdrawal of Secretary Noem’s reckless and dangerous policy that increases the risk of a terrorist smuggling a dangerous item onto a flight,” she continued.
A classified watchdog report found that TSA scanners cannot effectively screen shoes, US News Hub Misryoum reported, and the inspector general flagged the issue as urgent to former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Duckworth said the inspector general found that Noem’s policy shift had “inadvertently created a new security vulnerability in the system.” The senator also argued the agency missed a legally required window to respond, writing that “Such inaction violates Federal law, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance and DHS’s own directives.” That combination of technical limits and bureaucratic delay raises real questions about whether a single policy move can outpace equipment capability.
Restore the prior screening standard now, Duckworth urged, and ensure corrective steps are documented and enforced. The case for shoes off is framed not only as safety but as restoring process and oversight.
The shoes off debate reaches back more than a decade. The policy requiring passengers to remove shoes during TSA screening was put in place in 2006. When Noem announced the change, she said, “We expect this change will drastically decrease passenger wait times at our TSA checkpoints, leading to a more pleasant and efficient passenger experience,” she said at the time. “As always, security remains our top priority. Thanks to our cutting-edge technological advancements and multi-layered security approach, we are confident we can implement this change while maintaining the highest security standards.” Noem was removed by President Donald Trump last month and replaced by current DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin.
Duckworth accused Noem of putting politics ahead of protection. “Secretary Noem’s willingness to gamble the American people’s security in an unsuccessful attempt to boost her popularity was, and remains, a stunning failure of leadership—particularly following President Trump’s decision to launch an unconstitutional war of choice against Iran that DHS has determined, “is causing a heightened threat environment in the United States,” she wrote. Those are stark words that tie a procedural change to wider national security concerns and to shifting leadership at the department.
Restoring shoes off, Duckworth argues, would close a gap revealed by testing and help rebuild traveler trust in security procedures. Aside from the immediate policy reversal she seeks, the debate underscores the tension between efficiency and layered protection: technology improvements and streamlined boarding are valuable, but they must not outpace verification. The shoe removal question also forces agencies to reassess scanning capabilities and the broader shoe screening protocols used at checkpoints.