Bill Pascrell: “I want to salute the Speaker of the House, and here is why I want to salute him. He defused the religious connotations…”

“I want to salute the Speaker of the House, and here is why I want to salute him. He defused the religious connotations when this was first brought up. He did that yesterday, and I salute him. Imagine, to have one line for Christian Syrians and another line for Muslim Syrians. What are we reduced to here? What message does that send to the rest of the world? You tell me. It is shameful. So I thank him for that. I don't impugn anybody on the other side. I don't question their motives. I don't think that this is a good idea. The commitment we have to public safety can be upheld even as we provide refuge to some of the world's most vulnerable people. When you sleep tonight, think about the world's most vulnerable people, and we can still keep America safe.”