| A "Troubling Security" Administration? |
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| Wednesday, 08 April 2009 12:39 |
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March 29th was a relatively normal evening for Steve Bierfeldt, director of development for the popular grassroots organization Campaign for Liberty (C4L) which has been founded on the grounds of the constitutional ideas and theories that 2008 Presidential candidate Ron Paul ran on. Steve was returning from a C4L conference in St. Louis and passed through the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. Despite his compliance to all the standard security checks, one TSA official (Transportation Security Administration) grew suspicious over the amount of cash and checks Steve carried with him. The money was innocent enough — The Washington Times reported that the money was "received from ticket sales, bumper stickers, books and other conference-related items." But what resulted was a half-hour's detainment by the TSA and St. Louis police and a disturbing interview caught on Steve's handy iPhone (to listen, click here). Specifically, the TSA agent wanted to know who Steve worked for, why he was in St. Louis and why he was carrying so much money. Steve was insistent on asking, "Am I required by law to answer the question?" Strangely enough, the officers continuously dodged his question, a fact that Mr. Bierfeldt adamantly refused to ignore. The circular dialogue between the parties incited much frustration and rudeness on the part of the law enforcement, although Steve himself remained calm. Unfortunately, the recent strategic report published by the Missouri Information and Analysis Center (MIAC), which indicated in no unclear terms that supporters of candidates like Chuck Baldwin and Ron Paul were essentially enemies of the state, could perhaps have influenced the interrogation of Mr. Bierfedlt. In the end Steve was free to go and he managed to catch his flight. Currently the TSA is investigating the inappropriate conduct of the agent who claimed, "I need to check this out with my supervisor before I’m comfortable letting him [Bierfedlt] through my checkpoint.” Some may consider this scenario as isolated and extreme, but there is no guarantee that other ordinary citizens just like Mr. Bierfedlt will never have to undergo similar "special" searches at the airport. As Ron Paul told The Washington Times: "People need to know their rights, and law enforcement officers, even if their intentions are noble, should never be allowed to bully and detain law-abiding citizens. Steve's experience is a prime example of how our liberties are in real peril and that we need to wake up to what's going on in our country." The Missouri state government has since retracted the MIAC report, issued February 20th 2009. For further details plus the actual document see William F. Jasper's article by clicking here.
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