Incident Report Details Nancy Mace’s Airport Tirade Against Law Enforcement

South Carolina Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace engaged in a public altercation with law enforcement and TSA personnel at Charleston International Airport on Thursday, according to an incident report obtained by WIRED under South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act. The report outlines a series of confrontations involving verbal abuse, derogatory comments, and unprofessional behavior during her airport departure.

Timeline of the Incident

At approximately 6:30 a.m., Charleston County Aviation Authority Police were assigned to escort Mace from the curb to her flight, having been informed she would arrive in a white BMW at the ticketing curb. However, the officers were later advised she was running late and did not observe the vehicle arrive. By 7:00 a.m., dispatch directed them to the Known Crewmember (KCM) program entrance—a TSA-supervised lane for flight crew—where Mace was located.

Upon locating Mace, the report states, she immediately initiated a tirade of “loudly cursing and making derogatory comments” toward the officers. One officer’s supplemental account quotes her as stating, “we were ‘Fucking incompetent,’ and ‘this is no way to treat a fucking US Representative.’” During the confrontation, Mace allegedly included a South Carolina Senate colleague, referencing, “we would never treat Tim Scott like this.”

As officers escorted her to gate B-8, Mace continued her behavior, “yelling into her phone, either on a call or dictating text messages,” according to the report. An American Airlines gate agent later approached the officers, expressing disbelief and implying her conduct was inappropriate for a U.S. representative.

Reactions and Reporting

Following the incident, TSA supervisor informed officers he was “very upset” by Mace’s actions, noting she had “talked to several TSA agents the same way.” The supervisor added that Mace’s behavior would be “submitted to his superiors” due to its “unacceptable nature.” Notably, TSA agents have not received full compensation amid the ongoing government shutdown.

Mace’s director of operations, Cameron Morabito, responded to WIRED with a statement emphasizing “legitimate safety concerns,” citing “intensified threats” following Charlie Kirk’s assassination attempt. The statement claimed security procedures were “based solely on safety,” criticizing attempts to “politicize this reality.”

On X (formerly Twitter), Mace addressed the incident, asserting, “This is the entrance ALL Members of Congress use at the airport. Are you going to write that Senators Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott use the same entrance or no? Or no?”

Aftermath and Context

TSA and American Airlines did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An officer’s note in the report clarified video footage revealed Mace was initially dropped off in a non-white BMW, contradicting the initial claim of a white vehicle. The report concluded, “Any other person in the airport acting and talking the way she did, our department would have been dispatched and we would have addressed the behavior.”

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Update: This story was updated on 10/31/2025 with a statement from Mace’s director of operations.