A Texas congressman put an airline on notice after sharing details about his wife’s encounter with an “unhinged” employee who allegedly assaulted his dog.
As the hits have rolled in for the airline industry, and United Airlines in particular, Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R) obtained security footage appearing to show service a far cry from their slogan “Fly the Friendly Skies.”
According to the legislator and retired U.S. Navy SEAL, his wife and mother-in-law were traveling with their two dogs and his infant daughter when they were informed the pets would not be allowed on the flight. Crenshaw obtained footage from the airport through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to show the public what happened next when his family members decided they would book a flight with a different airline.
“The United agent wanted to take our dog out of the bag. She wanted to get the dog, photograph him and report my wife so they could never fly again,” the congressman said sharing several angles of the incident. “It was completely unhinged. My wife said, ‘No, of course not. You’re not touching my dog. You already told us we can’t fly so we’re just going to leave.’ And that’s what they tried to do.'”
“You see in the video they’re trying to leave and that woman reaches inside my dog’s bag and starts ripping things out of it. Out of her mind,” contended Crenshaw.
This is one of the more aggressive videos I’ve ever had to post. You really need to see it all the way to the end. You’ll see a United agent grab the dog and personal property, and you’ll hear the shocking recording of my conversation with that agent’s supervisor (the VP of… pic.twitter.com/xhK0v4zQzw
— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) January 21, 2024
Prior to detailing the events, the Texas lawmaker had spoken with United Airlines Vice President of Airport Operations Phillip Griffith in a November conversation he recorded per the one-party consent laws of the Lone Star State.
Crenshaw included audio from that exchange depicting hostility from the executive and alleging there was an attempt to coverup the incident while pointing blame to the congressman’s wife as a “handsy agitator.”
“I deal with people like you and your wife and customers like you every single day. And I treat them all the same. Let’s go,” Griffith could be heard saying. “Your wife was handsy. She was agitated from the very start.”
The politician shared heated audio of himself swearing during the exchange, prompting the vice president to tell him to “shut up.”
“I’m gonna end it. I don’t give a care what you think you can do,” Griffith went on to say. “I told you what’s gonna happen. This is about to come to an end.”
In his caption for the video, Crenshaw wrote of his intention to introduce legislation to address interactions like this and protect customers going forward. “Many of you have shared your stories of being mistreated by an airline agent on a power trip. It’s time to start considering legislation that protects passengers. These airlines took tens of billions of dollars from taxpayers. United took $10.9 B and owes us better than this.”
His account prompted others to detail their own encounters, including journalist Sara Carter who alleged her husband, a blind service veteran, had been mistreated by an American Airlines flight attendant at Thanksgiving. “I’m glad Dan spoke up because frankly the [way] some of the airline employee #FlightBullies treat paying customers is unbelievable.”
I know exactly how Rep. Dan Crenshaw feels because I was reprimanded by a flight attendant on American Airlines over Thanksgiving because I didn’t forewarn them in a specific letter on their computer system that my husband was blind. YES, my violation was not reporting my… https://t.co/J4flHAtpqV
— Sara A. Carter (@SaraCarterDC) January 21, 2024
United is on meltdown, our overall airline industry is crumbling with Boeing, pilots having been injected with clot shots, to these situations described and shown here.
— Ray Hill (@realrayhill22) January 21, 2024
My husband had a HORRIFIC time with United Airlines in 2017 when we were living in Houston. It was SO AWFUL, they were SO disrespectful and unwilling to help him that we both will NEVER, EVER fly United again since then. THEY ARE THE WORST!
— DebVader (@DebVader) January 22, 2024
This is where DEI hiring gets us.
— August Takala (@RudyTakala) January 21, 2024
The congressman’s recounting of events comes as United has faced considerable backlash over their embrace of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion agenda. With hiring practices seemingly putting quotas above qualifications, the airline’s CEO Scott Kirby was also criticized for allegedly being a drag queen.
Crenshaw had skipped over those details as he focused on the key issue of his family’s experience and asked in closing, “Is it United’s policy for your agents to grab passengers’ pets and property.”
In their own statement on the matter reported by Newsweek, United said, “We attempted to work with the Congressman to resolve his concerns amicably. We disagree with his characterization of what happened, and stand behind our employees who were upholding United’s policies on in-cabin pets to ensure the safety of his dog.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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