Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of Flake amendment No. 3556. The amendment is simple. It simply strikes the newly added prohibition in the Visa Waiver Program on citizens of Visa Waiver Program countries who are also dual nationals of certain other countries, such as Iran, Iraq, Sudan, and Syria. To be clear, this amendment keeps in place all other provisions added to the Visa Waiver Program to improve the security of the program, such as requiring greater information sharing. However, the dual national provision does not provide any meaningful security benefit and, instead, is a detriment to the country and the vast majority of dual nationals who provide a great benefit to the United States. The problem with the dual national prohibition is twofold. It is both imprecise in its application, and it is difficult, if not impossible, to administer. One reason the prohibition is imprecise is because it prevents travel under the program regardless of travel history. For example, a dual national of Iran who is prohibited from using the Visa Waiver Program need not have ever been to Iran to be prohibited. In fact, there is no clear definition of who qualifies as a dual national, and it demonstrates how this prohibition is impossible to administer. Many groups have pointed out that there is no international agreement on the rules of nationality, and that many people are dual nationals even if they do not wish to be.…”