Rep. Brian Mast Says TSA Can't Keep Their Hands Off His Metal Legs At Airport

Rep. Brian Mast is flying back home as Congress heads into a district work period ... which is harder for him than most because his cyborg body sets off alarm bells for TSA.

Our TMZ DC reporter Charlie caught up with the congressman from Florida at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Thursday morning ... and Charlie had to ask if it's tough getting through airport security with a pair of metal legs.

Rep. Mast -- who lost both his legs while serving in Afghanistan -- says, of course it is ... because, since he can't be scanned by a metal detector, he gets "scanned by many hands" instead.

He says agents have tried to wand him down before, but he says he's "half-metal" ... so it never really works out for him.

While this might be a problem for Rep. Mast, he does say there are some advantages to a legless life ... his feet never get cold, for example.

He also explains some of his wardrobe choices -- including eschewing slacks many members of Congress wear and wearing the same pair of shoes regardless of the occasion.

Plus, for Congressional fans who wanted two members for the price of one interview, one of Mast's colleagues also makes an appearance -- watch the clip all the way through to see who it is!

Thanks for the chat, Rep. Mast ... hopefully you legged it to your gate in time!