On the recordNovember 19, 2015
My Republican friends, unlike the French who had the vision and courage not to scapegoat desperate Syrian refugees fleeing the barbarians that attacked them in Paris, this is a foolish attempt to thwart ISIS terrorists who won't wait 2 years to be vetted. They would do what the 9/11 hijackers did using the existing visa system. Are we going to pause and certify visas for students, tourists, or workers? Why not? One really objectionable portion of this bill for me is I have worked for 10 years to try and help the Iraqis who worked with us in Iraq during that war to be able to escape the tender mercies of al Qaeda and others with long memories who are killing and torturing them. This bill pulls the plug on that and condemns them to be left to the terrorists. I think that is reprehensible. These are people who depended upon us, who relied upon us. We have been working in a bipartisan way for 10 years to help them escape to safety, and this bill would slam that door shut. You ought to be ashamed.
