KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers politics in Kansas, Missouri and at the local level. Share your story idea with Charlie.
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Passengers should expect air travel to return to normal by Thanksgiving, according to U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, a Republican from Tarkio, Missouri.
Graves is a pilot and chairs the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
In an exclusive interview with KSHB 41 News, Graves said he expects the government shutdown to end this week after senators announced a deal to move forward Sunday night. Whatever the Senate passes will need approval from the House later in the week.
Graves admitted getting air traffic control back into normal operating procedures will take more time because many towers are short-staffed.
“I’m going to estimate it’ll be pretty much back to normal in a couple of weeks," he said. "Probably by Thanksgiving. I hope it won’t affect the holiday season. It’s possible, but I don’t think it will."
The FAA ordered airlines to cut flights at 40 of the country’s busiest airports on Friday. Air traffic controllers have been working without pay during the government shutdown.
Those changes in flight traffic impacted Marlene Hines’ Monday flight out of the Kansas City International Airport.
“The flight got later. Then, it got earlier. Then, they rebooked me,” Hines said.
But Hines is more concerned about other aspects of the government shutdown.
“Traveling is a small issue,” she said. “Getting kids fed, getting people health care, that’s what our government needs to be taking care of.”
Graves said SNAP benefits, commonly known as food stamps, should get to recipients quickly.
“It’s very good to get SNAP back up and running,” Graves said. “That should take much less time to get up and going and moving forward and cleaned up and back to normal.”
Graves plans to return to Washington, D.C. Wednesday ahead of a vote to reopen the government.
President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social a proposal to give air traffic controllers who worked throughout the government shutdown a $10,000 bonus. He suggested giving controllers who took a day off during the shutdown a negative mark on their personnel record.
"The president, obviously, he can do that," Graves said. "I think there’s nothing wrong with applauding air traffic controllers who showed up.”
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