WASHINGTON, March 17 (Reuters) - A senior Trump administration official said Tuesday that if a government funding standoff continues, it may force the shutdown of some smaller airports in the coming weeks over a lack of security personnel.
The partial government shutdown has forced 50,000 Transportation Security Administration airport security officers to work without pay for the last month and 10% of them did not show up for work on Sunday.
“As the weeks continue, if this continues it’s not hyperbole to suggest that we may have to quite literally shut down airports — particularly smaller ones if callout rates go up,” Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl told Fox News.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
