Our first ‘Line of Defense’

by Sam Graves

A British journalist, Gerald Priestland, once had a very difficult time getting into Iraq. “It had taken me days to get a visa to Baghdad and when I arrived at the airport they tried to confiscate my typewriter on the grounds that I might use it to circulate subversive propaganda,” he said. “When I pointed out that it did not even type Arabic they admitted it only on condition that it be granted its own visa, which they inscribed in the space labeled, ‘Accompanied by his wife.’ For months afterwards immigration officers were demanding to see ‘Mrs Olivetti Priestland.'”

It’s an absurd story, but what if I told you that there was another country that let wanted foreign terrorists inside its borders? What if I told you that this country issued a visa to a dead terrorist several months after he died in the worst terrorist attack in history? What if I told you that this same country implemented a visa lottery, giving visas to foreigners from a list of ‘under-represented’ countries that included state sponsors of terrorism?

That country is the United States of America. We have made great strides in our immigration policy since September 11, 2001, but more needs to be done. You cannot talk about the defense against terrorism without talking about our immigration policy. Every stamp of approval on a visa has potentially deadly ramifications if it is merely a rubberstamp of approval. That is why I have introduced legislation that would ensure that everyone who enters this country is properly vetted, meaning virtually everyone who enters America has an interview and a background check before they set foot on our soil. It includes putting an end to fast track visa programs that shuffle people into America, avoiding the usual process. Until we have the right system in place, we need to temporarily suspend our visitor visa program. As demonstrated by the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, we cannot afford to make the same mistake twice.