Hudson Intros Bill to Thwart Obama's Syrian Refugee Plan
November 16, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 16, 2015
Hudson Intros Bill to Thwart Obama’s Syrian Refugee Plan
WASHINGTON, D.C.– Today, U.S. Representative Richard Hudson (NC-08) introduced the American SAFE Act of 2015 (H.R. 3999) to thwart the Obama administration’s plan to take in thousands of Syrian refugees:
"One of the main responsibilities of the federal government is to protect the American people. I have grave concerns about President Barack Obama's plan to welcome thousands of Syrian refugees into this country without proper and reliable vetting. The risk of terrorists slipping undetected into our country is too high. ISIS has vowed to exploit the refugee crisis and it appears they did just that in Paris. I refuse to allow President Obama to open our front door to radical Islamic extremists who are bent on burning down our house.
"That’s why I introduced today’s bill to stop the refugee process unless and until Americans can be assured that our government can effectively keep us safe and keep terrorists out. Clearly America and our allies face complex and growing threats from Islamic extremism and we must remain vigilant – this is just one step necessary to avoid a deadly catastrophe here at home."
The Obama administration said Sunday it will still continue to bring Syrian refugees into the U.S. despite reports that at least one of the terrorists in Paris may have slipped through Europe’s refugee system undetected and widespread concerns from high-ranking U.S. security officials that there are vulnerabilities in America’s Syrian refugee vetting process.
In October, FBI Director James Comey told the Senate Homeland Security Committee that “there are certain gaps” in our country’s ability to screen Syrian refugees. A few weeks later, he admitted again to the House Homeland Security Committee that the federal government is unable to effectively conduct thorough background checks on Syrian refugees because it “can only query against that which we have collected” in current databases.
In addition, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson admitted that the U.S. won’t “know a whole lot” about the Syrian refugees it welcomes into the country.
The American Security Against Foreign Enemies Act of 2015, or the American SAFE Act, is a commonsense, reasonable bill that would stop the administration’s plan to take in thousands of refugees from Iraq and Syria until it can assure no terrorists or individuals with radical sympathies or views will be admitted by requiring:
- The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the FBI Director, the Attorney General, and the Director of National Intelligence, to affirm to Congress that every refugee being admitted is not a security threat.
- The FBI Director to certify background checks have been completed for all refugees and that the background checks were carried out at the appropriate standard.
- An audit of admitted refugees by the Office of the Inspector General to ensure that the vetting process is working to the appropriate standard.
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Issues:Defense & National Security