TSA chief John Pistole said that despite internal advice that he “get out ahead” of potential uproar over the more invasive pat-down procedures that have been rolled out at airports across the country, he elected to withhold a public announcement for fear that terrorists could exploit it:
In an hour-long discussion with reporters, Pistole said media officials at the Department of Homeland Security had urged him to “get out ahead” of the potential controversy by formally announcing plans for enhanced body searches and the use of new x-ray and radio-wave imaging devices at 70 airports beginning in November.
But doing so would have provided a “roadmap or blueprint for terrorists” to avoid detection by using other airports where the new technology wasn’t in place, Pistole said.
Rather than publicize the changes, Pistole said he made a “risk-based” decision to roll it out first and “try to educate the public after we did that.
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