DHS Confirms Democratic Senator's Husband Removed from Biden TSA Watchlist Despite Recent Flight with Potential Terrorist

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a striking warning on Wednesday, raising concerns about alleged improprieties within the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). DHS claims that a prominent Democratic senator intervened to have her husband removed from a security watchlist, despite his reported travel alongside a "known or suspected terrorist." The controversy revolves around Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and her husband, William "Billy" Shaheen.

According to DHS, Billy Shaheen flew with an individual identified as a "known or suspected terrorist" on three separate occasions within a single year. The department's statement alleges that evidence has emerged, including documented correspondence and internal timelines, which suggest the Biden administration applied TSA’s watchlisting protocols inconsistently. "Circumventing security policies to benefit politically aligned friends and family at the expense of the American people," the statement read, underscoring the seriousness of the allegations.

DHS further asserts that Senator Shaheen "directly lobbied" former TSA Administrator David Pekoske, who then instructed agency officials to exclude Billy Shaheen from the Silent Partner Quiet Skies list. This list is designed to flag and monitor individuals deemed potential security risks during air travel. The department notes that while some Americans were added to the list with minimal oversight or explanation, Billy Shaheen was granted a sweeping exemption, raising questions about political favoritism and double standards in national security procedures.

The issue gains additional significance as it emerges against the backdrop of past surveillance concerns, including those raised by public figures such as Tulsi Gabbard, who have accused the government of politically motivated monitoring. In a pointed comparison, DHS noted, "All the while, Tulsi Gabbard, and many other Americans, were placed on the Silent Partners’ Quiet Skies list with little to no visibility, awareness, explanation or oversight."

Highlighting the breadth of what they characterize as systemic issues, DHS claims Billy Shaheen was not the sole beneficiary of such exclusions. The program purportedly allowed members of foreign royal families, political elites, professional athletes, and journalists to bypass enhanced security screening. Nonetheless, DHS emphasized that Billy Shaheen’s blanket exemption had been revoked under new leadership, signaling a shift toward restoring integrity in aviation security.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem stated, "It is clear that this program was used as a political rolodex of the Biden Administration – weaponized against its political foes and to benefit their well-heeled friends… This program should have been about the equal application of security, instead it was corrupted to be about political targeting." She pledged that future leadership would prioritize transparency, integrity, and equal enforcement of aviation security laws.

Further details provided by DHS outlined a timeline in which Billy Shaheen was first flagged as a co-traveler of a known or suspected terrorist during flights between Boston and Washington in July 2023. After each flagged incident, records show that Senator Shaheen’s office inquired with the TSA regarding her husband’s treatment, followed by meetings with senior agency officials. The documents indicate that shortly after these interactions, Shaheen was added to the Secure Flight Exclusion List, granting him immunity from additional screenings for approximately 18 months before his removal by current TSA leadership.

This emerging controversy comes as Senator Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has announced she will not seek re-election in 2026. Meanwhile, her daughter Stefany Shaheen has launched a campaign for a key seat in the House of Representatives, adding a new dimension to the political implications of the allegations.

As the Biden administration faces calls for accountability and reform within federal security programs, the DHS’s revelations place renewed scrutiny on whether the nation’s watchlisting procedures are being enforced with fairness and impartiality—core principles that officials vow to restore in the wake of these disclosures.