Female senator tweets about 'very uncomfortable' screening by TSA

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) complained Monday she was subject to a very uncomfortable screening by TSA. 

McCaskill tweeted about the experience before boarding a flight on Monday. 

The senator, who has complained about the Transportation Security Administration's  security techniques in the past, tweeted that she was selected for a pat down and that the experience was not a pleasant one. 

"?Today in my airport screening, test on my hands was positive," McCaskill wrote to her 89,100 followers. "Got private, more aggressive pat down. OMG. #veryuncomfortable?." 

In 2011, McCaskill referred to TSA pat-downs as "love pats" that she said made her not look forward to flying.

"I try to avoid a pat-down at all costs," McCaskill told TSA Administrator John Pistole during a Senate hearing that year. "There are many times women put their hands on me in a way that if it was your daughter or your sister or your wife, you would be upset."

TSA has come under fire for its security procedures from other lawmakers in the past. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he was "detained" by TSA for refusing a pat-down last year.

Additionally, former Rep. Francisco "Quico" Canseco (R-Texas) accused the agency of targeting him for additional pat-downs after a run-in at the San Antonio airport. 

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Dem lawmaker tweets college co-ed, then deletes messages

Rep. Steve Cohen repeatedly tweeted, and then deleted, messages to a woman on Twitter who his office is calling “the daughter of a longtime friend” and who has the same name as a Texas State University blonde bombshell featured in a college co-ed calendar.

In a Tuesday night message ahead of President Obama’s State of the Union address, a Twitter user named Victoria Brink tweeted to the Tennessee Democrat, “just saw you on tv!”

According to a tweet captured by the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation’s Politiwoops site, Cohen replied to Brink, “pleased u r watching. Ilu” The tweet was deleted after three minutes.

Both Wikipedia and UrbanDictionary.com define “ilu” as Internet slang for either “I love you” or “I like you.”

In another message sent Wednesday morning, Cohen wrote again to Brink on Twitter: “nice to know you were watchin SOTU (state of the union.) Happy Valentines beautiful girl. Ilu.” That message was deleted within 15 minutes of being posted.

A biography of Victoria Brink on CollegeDozen.com says the 24-year-old, who is seen posing in a turquoise and pink bikini, plans on “moving back to Beverly Hills or Houston to pursue a career in the fashion industry and do modeling on the side,” following her graduation.

Brink writes on the site that she has a 3.0 grade point average and some of her favorite activities include “floating the river at Dons, pool parties, beer-ritas at Chimy’s, and going out on the Square with my friends.”

The 63-year-old lawmaker is a longtime bachelor. He once told The Hill of his early years in the Tennessee state legislature, “Having been out there so long, I used to be on the most eligible bachelors list. I don’t think you get promoted to the emeritus level. I think you become ineligible.”

Cohen’s spokesman, Michael Pagan, tells ITK that his boss and Brink “are pretty much like family.” Adding, “There’s nothing going on there. He actually has a longtime girlfriend in Memphis.”

When ITK pressed Pagan why Cohen was writing “ilu” and wishing the Twitter user a happy Valentine’s Day, he responded, “That I do not know.”

The press secretary explained of the deleted tweets, “He meant to do it as a private message and then he realized he did it publicly.”

Pagan repeated, “There’s nothing inappropriate going on.”

Brink could not be reached for comment.

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Retiring Texas senator tweets 'best wishes' to new Sen. Cruz

By Alicia M. Cohn - 01/04/13 04:34 PM ET

A changing of the guard happened Friday in tweets exchanged by Texas’s newest senator, Ted Cruz (R), and the outgoing lawmaker he replaces.

Greatly appreciated and many thanks for your service. “@kaybaileyhutch: Best wishes on your first full day representing Texas! @tedcruz”

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 4, 2013

Tea Party favorite Cruz takes the seat filled by Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas).

Cruz used social media extensively during his campaign, and Cruz’s social media presence is still flourishing post-election on Twitter and Facebook.

Although not all new members have official Twitter accounts yet, the 113th Congress could be the most socially networked yet. One returning member, Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), didn't want to be left out, and announced Friday he is joining Twitter for the first time.

I'm kicking off the #113Congress by joining twitter. It's good to be back doing the people's work.

— Rep. Andy Harris, MD (@RepAndyHarrisMD) January 4, 2013

Harris was one of the few congressional holdouts of the 112th Congress when it came to Twitter, but he has been active on Facebook.

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