JOURNALIST SAYS CUSTOMS OFFICER HELD HIS PASSPORT UNTIL HE ANSWERED 'YES' TO 'YOU WRITE PROPAGANDA,

[GulfCoast66]

19. Ok. I'm suspicious. I travel oversees yearly.

I have Global Entry as I’m guessing all reporters who travel overseas have.

Re-entering is a no brainer. Finger print or facial scan, fill out the questions, none of which as about your profession and get your slip. Show it to a customs guy after 3 questions and thru you go. One about tobacco products.

Last year coming back from Europe I had 30 or so Cuban cigars. I declared I had tobacco products. The guy told me cuban cigars were not allowed. I politely told him they were and please talk to a supervisor. He did, apologized to me, and told me that he was brought to work the line after 5 years in an office because they were so short staffed and did not know the rules had changed. Then I went right thru.

Now, I’m not a confrontational guy by nature. But if a Boarder Control Officer did this to me, I would as for a superior officer immediately. And if I was a reporter and asked these I would state ‘I write articles about things like CBP office harassment of America citizens’.

So maybe it happened this way. But even this mid-management guy would not put up with it. I would immediately ask for a supervisor. I’m a fucking American Citizen. With a valid passport they cannot deny me re-entry into the country.

I’ve seen too many stories like this lately that get debunked.

I mean really, if you were an obscure reporter would you not cherish the opportunity to escalate this? Can you see any reporter you have ever heard of capitulating like this?