I believe that all AA was trying to say was that, in the beginning, in order to introduce TSA PreCheck, the airlines were able to offer it to some of their frequent fliers.
I was getting it often enough that I thought I had it by default. The first time I did not get it, I applied for it as soon as I got home. It cost $85 for 5 years and if you fly a lot, it may be worth it to you. I know it helped me once get through a short SXM return connection. it is a government program, not an airline program.
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