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In a social media post Sunday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy accused Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of "playing politics" over the government shutdown and the travel-related issues that have arisen from it. In the X post, Duffy argued that the New York senator "voted 14 times to keep the government closed." "14 times he refused to pay air traffic controllers," Duffy's post said. "14 times to keep Americans’ flights delayed. 14 times to use public pain as leverage. And then he says every day gets better!" Duffy also attached a video of a recent CNN clip where he explained his reasoning for reducing flights and air traffic controllers. "I have more complaints coming into the FAA from pilots who are saying that air traffic controllers are not as responsive, they seem stressed, or they're not using the appropriate language because they're under pressure," the official said. "So I look at that data. That came from the safety team, and the trend line is going in the wrong direction. So I need to take action and make sure that we keep people safe." In a Nov. 7 X post, Schumer blamed Republicans for the shutdown and said that "the ball is in their court." "Democrats made an offer to Republicans to re-open the government and extend the ACA tax credits for one year," wrote Schumer. "We’re calling their bluff." Over 2,100 flights were canceled on Sunday due to the ongoing government shutdown and the FAA's recent order to scale back air traffic, according to The Associated Press. The cancellations, which impact 40 U.S. airports, were reported by the AP at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday. The outlet also reported 7,000 additional delays on Sunday. More than 1,500 flights were canceled Saturday, following over 1,000 flights that were canceled Friday. The Associated Press contributed to this update. The Republican Study Committee (RSC), the largest conservative caucus in the House of Representatives , warned of worsening travel issues on Sunday amid government shutdown-related airport chaos. The committee, which is chaired by Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, published an X post on Sunday detailing "thousands of flights [being] canceled across the country." "At Atlanta’s airport, normally the world's busiest airport, 18 of 22 air traffic controllers didn’t show up for work," the committee's post read. "With Thanksgiving just two weeks away, the chaos is only going to get worse." The RSC then accused Democrats of "using the shutdown as political leverage against the American people." "Enough is enough," the post concluded. "It’s time to reopen the government."
