Last month, the US Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass a bipartisan bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration, a resounding rejection of Congressman Bill Shuster’s ill-conceived plan to privatize our air traffic control system. Yet despite this clear message, the fight against Shuster’s agenda is not over. Backed by powerful airline lobbyists and special interests, Shuster is readying his privatization proposal for takeoff yet again, and we need your help to ground it as the clock ticks down towards another FAA funding expiration.
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Aviation is a critical part of American infrastructure, and by placing priority on the needs of airlines, Shuster is putting the American people in jeopardy. What he doesn’t realize is that access to air travel doesn’t just affect his lobbyist friends and political forces in Washington; it is everyday Americans who stand to lose the most. Millions of people rely on air travel to connect their families and do their jobs, something Shuster seems to have lost sight of from his office on Capitol Hill.
If we allow Shuster to privatize our skies, American air travelers will be squeezed with new fees and routes will be “streamlined” right around rural communities. Privatizing air traffic control is selling off one our public goods to corporate power and abdicating the affirmative role that government plays in protecting our air space. Such a move flies in the face of everything progressives believe, we must stop Republicans from giving away our airspace to special interests.
We know the negative impacts of privatization -- record profits for special interests while costs fall on the back of the American worker and consumer -- an organization unaccountable to the people or the representatives we elected to serve. Despite opposition from aviation groups and legislators on both sides of the aisle, Congressman Shuster is putting the big airline lobby before the public interest.
Taking progressive action is critical to protect jobs, travelers, and safety. Make your voices heard in the halls of Congress and say no to privatization.