It's even better if you have a newborn with you. No hassle at all, they even take you out of line and move you to the front of the line.
BTW-Yes, you need ID and yes, you need an airline ticket to get through security and get to the gates. I've never been searched.
Once I packed a carry on bag (pre 9/11) for a business trip I was taking and forgot to check the bag. I had used the bag a couple weeks earlier as a shooting bag and left a couple of loaded magazines in the bottom of the bag. The person doing the screening asked if he could look in my bag and I said "sure, no problem". I was horrified when he pulled out two clips loaded with .45 ACP rounds. I thought I would be hauled off to security but I explained the situation to them and said that I never intended to bring them with me, I asked what would happen now and the guy paused for a minute and said "well, you can't take them on the plane with you." At that point I breathed a sigh of relief and he said my wife could pick them up on the way out (this was back in the day when your spouse could accompany you to the gate). I bet if I tried that now the outcome would be quite different. This was at Lindburgh Field (San Diego International Airport) in San Diego, CA BTW.