Yeah, that worked.

As if there was any doubt.

What do they do now?
Hire sketch artists?

So we also find out there’s no one posted at an exit. Good to know if you’re a terrorist.

This situation is so ridiculous. After seeing hundreds upon hundreds of would-be passengers herded and corraled back into the airport like cattle, and held there for hours, I thought TSA gave the terrorists of the world a semi-brilliant new strategy: create this situation then detonate the bomb inside the airport, killing hundreds more “infidels” than they could possibly kill on just one plane.

From Fox News:

TSA Allegedly Waited 80 Minutes Before Reporting Breach at N.J. Airport

NEWARK, N.J. — The Transportation Security Administration waited more than an hour to alert law enforcement about a security breach at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport on Sunday, MyFoxNY.com reported.

An unidentified man, who may have just been lost, confused or simply mistaken about which way to go, was able to bypass security and enter the airport through an exit door.

MyFoxNY.com was reportedly able to see a computer dispatch log that indicated the breach had occurred at 5:20 p.m. Sunday. But it wasn’t until 80 minutes later, at 6:40 p.m. that the Port Authority Police Department was notified about the incident, MyFoxNY.com reported.

The TSA said they needed time to investigate the traveler’s claims before they could request a shutdown of the terminal, which required several calls up the chain of command and viewing surveillance tape, according to the station.

“We have security officers stationed at the exit,” the TSA reportedly said in a statement.

“We’re investigating the circumstances surrounding the breach and will make an assessment as to what level of disciplinary action is necessary… we did the right thing.” …

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,581990,00.html

So in short, “the system worked.”

Of course we only have ourselves to blame for all this, given a Republican (Bush of course) is the one who gave in on federalizing airport screeners in the first place.

I wonder how many planes left the terminal in the 80 minutes TSA was “viewing surveillance tape.”

But wait, there’s more, this time from the Associated Press:

Airport Cameras Faulty During Newark Security Breach

NEWARK, N.J. — Federal agents weren’t able to immediately retrieve surveillance images of a man who breached security at Newark Liberty International Airport because a camera system wasn’t working properly.

John Kelly, a Port Authority of New York and New Jersey spokesman, said the camera at a security checkpoint was streaming live images but wasn’t recording them.

That made it impossible for Transportation Security Administration personnel to check an image of a man seen walking in through an exit door Sunday evening until it could view tapes from a nearby Continental Airlines surveillance camera.

It was not known how long the camera at the TSA security checkpoint had stopped storing footage because archived images are only retrieved if an incident has occurred or is suspected, TSA spokeswoman Ann Davis said Tuesday. According to Davis, TSA will check the cameras’ archiving daily.

The cameras were installed by the Port Authority about two years ago, and the agency maintains and operates them. …

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,582106,00.html

I’m becoming convinced that we have nothing to fear from al Qaeda, as if they were really on the ball our security measures wouldn’t even slow them down.