Ga. GOP chair: Sen. Jon Ossoff is posturing, not governing on airport delays

And Georgia U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff owns that mess.

For months, Ossoff has tried to present himself as a pragmatic, middle-of-the-road senator. But when the moment came to choose between basic governing and partisan obstruction, he chose Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s strategy over Georgia’s interests.

In January, Ossoff joined fellow Senate Democrats in pledging opposition to a spending package that included billions for the Department of Homeland Security. Then, on Feb. 12, he voted against advancing legislation to keep that funding moving.

That is not moderation. That is not leadership. That is partisan loyalty dressed up as principle.

Ordinary travelers and struggling TSA agents suffer

Credit: Handout

Credit: Handout

Let’s be clear about what is at stake. DHS is not some abstract acronym in a budget fight. It includes TSA, FEMA, the Coast Guard, and the cybersecurity and emergency-response functions Americans rely on every day.

As this partial shutdown has dragged into its second month, roughly 120,000 DHS employees — including about 50,000 TSA officers — have been working without pay. At the same time, Atlanta travelers have faced checkpoint waits topping ninety minutes, lines stretching beyond two hours, and hundreds of delays and cancellations at Hartsfield-Jackson.

When the busiest airport in the world starts breaking down under the strain, Georgia feels it first.

That means the small business owner trying to make it to a client meeting feels it. The family heading out on spring break feels it. The worker trying to get home feels it. The TSA officer deciding whether to put gas in the car or groceries on the table feels it most of all.

This is where Ossoff’s defenders will try to change the subject. They will say Democrats support funding some parts of DHS, just not all of it. They will try to slice the department into politically convenient pieces and pretend that counts as governing. But Georgia does not need word games. Georgia needs results. Georgia needs a senator who understands that homeland security is not a prop in an ideological fight. It is a core responsibility of the federal government.

Senator should challenge Democrats’ shutdown strategy

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

And this is the deeper problem with Jon Ossoff. He always seems most comfortable when he is issuing statements, striking a pose or blaming someone else. But when there is a real test of judgment — when there is pressure from the activist left, when Schumer draws a line, when the national Democratic base demands confrontation — Ossoff falls in line.

He does not stand up to his party. He does not put Georgia first. He votes with the machine, then hopes Georgians will not notice the consequences.

But Georgians are noticing.

They are noticing that while TSA officers go unpaid, Ossoff is still playing politics. They are noticing that while airport lines spiral and travel disruptions spread, he is still refusing to break with his party’s shutdown strategy. They are noticing that when essential functions of government are on the line, Jon Ossoff’s instinct is not to govern — it is to posture.

That may win applause in Washington.

It does not help Georgia.

A United States senator has many responsibilities, but one of the most basic is this: When the safety, security, and daily functioning of the country are on the line, do your job. Fund the government. Support the people who protect the homeland. Keep the system working for the citizens you represent.

Jon Ossoff failed that test.

Georgia deserves a senator who will choose our families over partisan theater, our security over stunt politics, and our state over Schumer. This shutdown has made one thing painfully clear: when Georgia needed leadership, Jon Ossoff chose politics.

Josh McKoon is chairman of the Georgia Republican Party.