Congress will move to close loopholes that could allow Islamic State terrorists to enter the United States and conduct attacks like the one last week in Paris that killed 129 people, House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul said Wednesday.
“Today we must make this much clear: We are at war,” the Texas Republican said at a joint hearing with the Foreign Affairs Committee.
First on the agenda is a move to slow President Obama’s plan to dramatically increase the number of Syrian refugees admitted into the United States to 10,000 by 2017 until the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the director of national intelligence can certify that none would be a security threat.
French authorities believe that some of those who took part in Friday’s attacks in Paris sneaked into the country as refugees.
“We cannot wait for the president to take action. Congress will act immediately to make sure the system is more secure,” McCaul said, noting that the administration’s own intelligence and law enforcement officials have detailed the risks of taking in Syrian refugees without proper vetting.
But that’s not the only concern. Foreign fighters are a key source of manpower for the Islamic State, and Wednesday’s hearing was called in part to explore the risks they pose when they return home.
A report released at the end of September by the Homeland Security panel estimated that more than 25,000 foreigners were fighting for the group in Syria, including more than 250 U.S. citizens. The United Nations estimates that number has grown to about 30,000 from 104 countries, twice the number as a year ago.
“ISIS is not contained as the president says. ISIS is expanding globally,” McCaul said, saying Obama’s strategy of containing the group has led to “a constant stream of terror.”
“We need a strategy for victory in the war against Islamist terror, and Syria is where it needs to start,” he said, echoing demands of other Republicans for a tougher approach to the extremist group.
