If you’re a frequent traveler based out of Washington, DC, there’s a good chance you are familiar with Gate 35X.
Deemed by Washingtonian magazine as “the worst airport gate ever,” 35X is an American Airlines gate at Reagan National Airport’s C terminal. It’s the gate where Robert Mueller and Donald Trump Jr. were spotted waiting for their respective flights last summer.
And this is the gate where Sen. Elizabeth Warren found herself Thursday night. Running for president may appear glamorous, but the reality can be much more mundane. Candidates often find themselves stuck in airports, dealing with flight delays and scouting out the terminal’s best food options – just like the rest of us.
But why is gate 35X so bad? To board your plane, you must first descend a set of escalators that lead you to a crowded room, where seating can be hard to come by. Here, you wait for the airline to announce over the PA system which of several doors you should head to. There is, of course, a subsequent mad dash to said door. But that door doesn’t lead you to the aircraft – it leads you to a bus. When the bus is filled to capacity, it makes a slow, winding journey across the airport to your plane.
Warren was getting on the only direct flight that day to Charleston, West Virginia, ahead of a campaign event the next morning in Kermit, a town more than 80 miles southwest of the capital. She planned to use the backdrop of the small town to highlight the country’s opioids epidemic, and her newly released plan to tackle it.
By 6:20 p.m. ET, the Democratic presidential candidate was spotted in the terminal with two of her advisers. As she waited in line at &pizza, fellow patrons asked for selfies. One man asked Warren to speak to someone on FaceTime – she obliged. With pizza in hand, Warren next headed further into Terminal C to the Dunkin’ Donuts, where she picked up an iced black tea.
With thunderstorms in the region, the Charleston flight was delayed more than once. Also spotted in the gate area was Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown catching a flight to Akron, Ohio, as well as former White House lawyer Ty Cobb. More than an hour after the scheduled departure time, Door 4 was called for the Charleston flight.
The bus portion of the Gate 35X experience – many say this part is the most treacherous – was about to begin.
Warren boarded an already crowded bus. Fellow travelers immediately recognized her. One man offered her a thumbs up across the bus. Another woman appeared less pleased – she muttered that Warren wants to make everything “free,” adding that it was unclear the senator could possibly pay for all of her ideas.
After the doors to the bus finally closed and the journey to the plane was underway, Warren began to field questions, much like she does at every campaign event.
One man wanted to know why she was headed to Kermit.
“I introduced an opioid bill yesterday with Congressman Cummings from Baltimore and so part of it is to be able to go there and talk about that. Hope it’s a good place to talk about it,” Warren said.
When the man responded that that’s where pharmaceutical companies “make the most money,” Warren said that is why her plan isn’t just about treatment.
“It’s about holding the executives of these drug companies liable for what they did.”
When another man asked if she was aware that a certain number of pills had flooded the town of Kermit, Warren corrected him – the actual number was actually far bigger.
After an uneventful and smooth journey, flight 5017 landed in Charleston a few minutes before 10 p.m., two hours behind schedule.
