As though employees of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) weren’t already sufficiently stressed by staffing shortages and last year’s DOGE layoffs, “Pistol Pete” Hegseth’s Pentagon has now invaded the skies over the southwestern U.S. border city of El Paso, Texas.

Apparently, there have been recent incursions into U.S. airspace by alleged Mexican cartel drones — a situation on which the FAA and the Defense Department have been working together toward a solution, as they should.

But on Wednesday, the FAA was forced to suddenly close the airspace over El Paso when the Pentagon decided to authorize U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to activate an anti-drone laser, deployed at nearby Fort Bliss, without first coordinating with the FAA to ensure the safety of commercial air traffic.

Initially, the FAA announced a ten-day shutdown; but once it had been determined that there was no ongoing danger to aircraft in the area, the closure was lifted after just a few hours. But the damage had already been done. Travelers into and out of El Paso were stranded for hours, and some medical evacuation flights had to be rerouted.

People familiar with the matter said the technology had been used despite a meeting scheduled for later in February at which the FAA and the Pentagon were to discuss the issue. [Seung Min Kim, et al., Associated Press, February 11, 2026.]

As luck would have it, the problem was quickly solved . . . this time. But think of the possible ramifications of this sort of unilateral action being taken by an autocratic department head who believes he is not required to follow mandated procedures . . . or is simply not bright enough to know what the hell he’s doing.

And another question comes to mind. CBP is under the auspices of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which, as we are all too well aware, is in the hands of “Quick-Draw Kristi” Noem. But in matters involving border security, CBP works closely with the Department of Defense (DoD).

So, was Noem aware of what her department had been ordered to do? Or did Hegseth bypass her as well? In either case, the FAA was not consulted as it should have been; but the answer to the question would help to determine culpability.

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The bottom line here is that we are seeing yet another example of the arrogance and the total incompetence — a treacherous combination — of the inmates who are running the asylum in Washington. And I don’t see how we can be expected to survive another three years of this kind of madness.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/12/26