Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday called on Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to protect travelers facing a series of flight disruptions.
In a letter to Buttigieg, Sanders acknowledged passengers’ frustrations with flight delays, cancellations, and high prices—urging the Transportation Department to take “immediate action” to address said issues.
“During the pandemic, when air travel came to a near halt, U.S. taxpayers came to the rescue and gave $54 billion to the airline industry,” Sanders wrote. “The top eight airlines alone received nearly $50 billion in taxpayer assistance from the federal government. Given all of the generous taxpayer support that has been provided to the airline industry, all of us have a responsibility to make sure that passengers and crew members are treated with respect, not contempt.”
The Vermont independent also called on Buttigieg to impose hefty fines on airlines for flights delayed more than two hours and for scheduling flights without proper staffing.
“Taxpayers bailed out the airline industry during their time of need,” Sanders said. “Now, it is the responsibility of the airline industry and the Department of Transportation to ensure, to the maximum extent possible, that the flying public and crew members are able to get to their destinations on time and without delay.”
In response, a spokesperson for the Transportation Department said that it has taken actions to mitigate the problems.
“We share the expectation that when Americans buy an airline ticket, they will get where they need to go safely, affordably, and reliably,” the spokesperson said in an email. “We will continue to work with airlines to meet that expectation, but also not hesitate in using enforcement actions to hold them accountable.”
In related news, Sanders said last month that he would support a reelection bid by President Joe Biden if he chooses to run in 2024 amid faltering Democratic support for the incumbent.
During an interview on CNN, he was asked if he would support Biden in 2024, saying: “I think Biden will probably run again, and if he runs again, I will support him.”
Sanders, who ran for the White House against Biden in 2020, also left the door open for his own White House ambitions by making his promise conditional on whether Biden runs again.
