If you want to understand just how provincial and insular Trump is look at this joke. I imagine the thinking behind this comes from the impression the USA’s in position to tell the world what to do and that things in that world work like Trump’s childish mind thinks they do. Good Lord…what is Trump worried about? Cuban cigars or a bomb? Does anyone think a traveler headed to the USA with terrorist intent is going to fess up at the departing airport? How silly can you be. Does anyone with international experience think the USA carries the clout to demand this anymore? That evaporated when we bailed out of Vietnam. It’s so damn silly in so many ways. “Sir…whats in your baggage”…ahhhh C4, some detonators and a remote device" " come with me then". Right.
You can’t stop terrorism at airports and borders. You can’t stop it with armies. The CIA, FBI and DOJ can’t stop it either. Never could.
Anyway, a terrorist doesn’t even have bring his tools in, he can buy anything he needs, guns, explosives, body armor.
More security theater. Waste of time and money, and will have no discernible impact on actual safety.
Trump is a firm believer in the Three-Question Rule widely employed by security forces and intelligence services – if you ask someone with ill intent three times, they have to tell you their plans. Trump definitely saw it work in a tense hostage situation once:
This is not something new. Airport security on flights heading to US have been doing thorough screening on passengers at least since the underwear bomber. Homeland security has also been checking luggage as far back as 10 year on departing flights from US. These days you do not even lock your suitcases and when I reach my destination outside US I find a Homeland security card in my suitcase and signs that someone rummaged through it What will be new is if passengers are asked to remove all their clothes and are deeply probed through all their cavities. May be Airports will soon need to employ surgeons to perform colonoscopies.