Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughter calls TSA ‘unconstitutional’ after pat-down

One of U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughters said she experienced an “absurdly invasive” pat-down Thursday at an airport security checkpoint and suggested her father would limit or eliminate the Transportation Security Administration if it was under his authority.

Evita Duffy-Alfonso said on the social platform X that she nearly missed her flight after opting out of a body scan because she said she is pregnant and concerned about radiation exposure. She said she waited 15 minutes for a pat-down and that TSA agents were “rude” and “tried to pressure” her into walking through the scanner.

“All this for an unconstitutional agency that isn’t even good at its job,” she said.

TSA said in a statement Friday it is aware of Duffy-Alfonso’s complaint.

“TSA takes complaints about airport security screening procedures seriously and investigates complaints thoroughly to ensure the correct procedures are applied,” the agency said.

In another post, Duffy-Alfonso said her father would “radically limit” or “lobby Congress to abolish” TSA if it was under his control.

Duffy’s Department of Transportation controls the Federal Aviation Administration and is charged with setting and enforcing safety regulations for all major modes of transportation, including air travel. But TSA is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

TSA is responsible for screening passengers, bags and cargo for weapons or explosives. It was created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“The ‘golden age of transportation’ cannot begin until the TSA is gone,” Duffy-Alfonso said, a reference to her father’s broad campaign to make travel more family friendly and revive what he calls “the golden age of travel,” including a recent push encouraging passengers to dress more formally while flying.

The Transportation Department declined Friday to comment on Duffy-Alfonso’s complaints about TSA.

In a follow-up post on X, Duffy-Alfonso clarified that she supports President Donald Trump and Homeland Security, “but there needs to be more common sense around how we treat Americans exercising their right to travel,” she said.

According to TSA, passengers can request a private screening as an alternative to the body scanner. The agency warns on its website that “sufficient pressure must be applied in order to ensure detection” because a “pat-down screening is conducted to determine whether prohibited items are concealed under clothing.”