(White House Press Release, October 23, 2025)
Democrats’ reckless government shutdown — now dragging into its third week — has plunged America’s air traffic control system towards a tailspin. While Democrats play political roulette in service of their demented agenda, the nation’s 13,000 air traffic controllers — dedicated patriots keeping our skies safe — are left to scrape by without paychecks or take on second jobs simply to make ends meet.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy took to Capitol Hill today to expose the fallout of the Democrat-driven crisis, which threatens to upend Americans’ travel plans and even the future of American aviation itself:
- Controllers’ anger boils over: “They’re angry… They’re frustrated that the Congress — at least in the Senate — is focused on paying for health care benefits for illegals as opposed to paying their paychecks for the great work that they provide to the American people.” (Watch)
- Workers abandoned without paychecks: “Next Tuesday is the first paycheck that they will not receive for the work that they did in October… I don’t want my air traffic controllers to take a second job… I want them coming to their facilities and controlling the airspace, but they’re having to make decisions about how they spend their time to make sure they put food on their table.” (Watch)
- Flight disruptions threaten holiday travel: “I can’t guarantee you that your flight’s going to be on time. I can’t guarantee you that your flight’s not going to be cancelled. It’s going to depend on our air traffic controllers coming in to work every single day… If they do not, we’ll know whose fault it is.” (Watch)
- Recruitment crisis looms: “They’re thinking about leaving the Academy — smart young men and women — because they don’t want to work for a system that won’t pay them, that doesn’t guarantee them a paycheck… Problems that ricochet in the months and the years to come.” (Watch)
Each day Democrats delay in doing their jobs is another betrayal to the hardworking Americans who keep our nation moving — but Democrats don’t care so long as they can use them as “leverage” in their sick political games.
